Welcome Home Wolf
by SWWoman
Summary: The sequel to the The Wolf at My Door and Wolves Mate for Life. John Reese's parents were murdered over twenty years ago and John was banished from his own pack. Now John and his mate Joss return to his hometown to solve the murder.
1. Chapter 1 -Murder In Washington

**Hello, this is the long awaited sequel to The Wolf At My Door and Wolves Mate for Life. Sorry it took so long. I have tried to write this fic so that you don't have to read those fics to understand this one.**

**Thanks to everyone who has been so supportive of this series. Special hugs to Wolfmusic218, ReeseisLAVAhot and SVG67 for looking this over for me and giving such helpful feedback**

* * *

**Chapter 1 - A murder in Washington**

The computer suddenly came out of sleep mode and beeped urgently.

Harold Finch was standing across the room in the library that had long ago been dubbed HQ by his team, flipping through his new first edition, enjoying the feel of the old book in his hands. He looked up, startled by the interruption. He returned the book to the shelf and limped back across the computer room, while the computer beeped urgently again. "What have you found now?" he muttered under his breath.

He sat down in his chair and rolled up to the desk. On the screen was a newspaper article from the Tacoma Times in Washington detailing a gas explosion that killed two people when it completely destroyed their home. Finch read through the article twice. He looked up into the webcam over his screen, "I understand," he said simply.

A few minutes later, Finch heard a happy yip of greeting from Bear and he peeked around his monitor to see John Reese entering the room carrying his usual box of doughnuts while Bear bounded up to him wagging his tail. John set the box on the table and knelt down to give Bear a good ear scratching.

Samantha Shaw was right behind him and she also lavished attention on Bear.

After Bear had been given a proper greeting, John stood up. "Morning, Finch. Do we have a new number?"

"In a manner of speaking. I think we will need to bring the Detectives in on this: would you please call Joss and have her bring Lionel?"

John lifted an eyebrow at the unusual request, but did as Finch asked. He was always happy to call his mate anyway. He pulled his phone from his pocket and punched the preset that was number one in his heart.

"What do you need?" his mate Detective Joss Carter answered the phone.

John pretended to pout. "What makes you think I want something? Can't I just call the love of my life to talk?"

John could hear Joss's eyebrow raise over the phone. "You called just to ask to talk?" in a tone of voice the plainly told him she didn't believe a word of it.

"Actually we have anew case. We need to you and Fusco to get over as soon as you can get here."

Joss laughed, "Thought so. We'll be there in a few minutes."

Carter and her partner Detective Lionel Fusco arrived a short time later. "What's up?" Fusco asked as he snagged a maple bar out of the box on the table.

John looked over at his boss, "I assume we have a new number."

Finch shook head, "No, this is a different type of case John. As you will recall, the Machine, since the virus set it free, has been rather more communicative than it was before."

"Yes, I know. It's been sending you more than just numbers on occasion," John said evenly.

"It sent me an interesting newspaper article today about the death of a pair of Alpha Wolves. In a gas explosion. _In Puyallup, Washington_."

John's eyes opened a bit wider and his lips got very thin, "My parents?" he asked softly, his eyes intense and hard on his employer.

Finch shook his head and then locked his eyes with John's, "No, _this happened just last week_."

John's face went white, his jaw tightened and he closed his eyes. Joss squeezed his hand, but he didn't acknowledge her. He opened his eyes, staring straight ahead while his jaw moved slightly from side to side. His eyes were glacial.

Shaw raised her hand, "Excuse me, can someone fill me in here? Last time I checked, Washington was on the other side of the country, well out of our sphere of influence." Shaw was Wolf herself and she knew Wolf Culture. She understood that the death of an Alpha couple was huge, but she could not understand why the death of an Alpha couple on the other side of the country was a big deal to this team.

Harold spoke first without taking his eyes off John, "Mr. Reese's parents were the Alphas of the pack in Puyallup and they were killed in a gas explosion when he was away in the Army. And last week, the current Alphas of Puyallup were killed in a gas explosion, just like the one that killed Mr. Reese's parents."

"Oh." Shaw looked sympathetically at John. "Well then I guess you need to go back and find out who did it," she said in a matter of fact tone.

John looked hard at Shaw. "I haven't been back in over 20 years," he growled deep in this throat. And then he got up and walked out of the room without looking back.

Shaw looked over at Joss. "Aren't you going after him?" she demanded.

Joss arched an eyebrow at Shaw, "Chill out, half pint. I need to give him a few minutes before I interrupt the brooding."

Shaw shrugged, "You know him best." To say Shaw was not good with people was an understatement of epic proportions. As she often said, "I'm much better at shooting them than I am at talking to them."

No one argued with that. She was, however, smart enough to trust Joss's judgment when it came to the complicated ex-CIA assassin.

"So why hasn't John been back home in over twenty years?" Shaw asked.

Fusco and Finch both looked to Carter, plainly deferring to her to answer the question

Joss took a deep breath, "The day his parents were killed, John didn't just lose his parents, he lost his whole pack. Right after his parents died, someone started the rumor that he was responsible for their deaths, that he had them killed so he could take over the pack."

Shaw frowned. "But that doesn't make sense; he was the son of the Alphas, a born Alpha, he would have taken over the pack anyway. He didn't need to kill to become an Alpha."

Joss nodded her agreement. "Yeah, and he had an airtight alibi to boot. The sheriff investigating the explosion cleared him within 24 hours, but the rumor had legs and just would not die. It basically drove John away from his hometown and all his friends. He never returned after his parents were buried."

"He grew up there, they knew them his whole life and yet they stabbed him in the back," Fusco growled as he curled back his lip showing some fang in disdain for those who'd turned their backs on his friend and Alpha all those years ago.

Shaw didn't know what to say. She hadn't known John very long and she was not the best judge of character, but she knew enough to know that John was a good man. To think he would kill his own parents was beyond laughable in her opinion. And the thought that the Wolves he had grown up with and who had known him all his life couldn't see that, was shocking.

Joss continued, "The betrayal hurt him so much, he renounced his Wolf side for years. He didn't morph, he didn't run with a pack. He only dated non-Wolves and hung with non-Wolf friends. He even denied _being_ Wolf for years, until the CIA recruited him."

Shaw didn't know what to say, "Wow, that's rough."

"Yes, it is." Joss got up, "Now if you'll excuse me, I think it's time I checked on my mate." And she left the room.

* * *

Joss found John in the small conference room they had converted to a makeshift bedroom for those nights when it was more convenient, or safer, to sleep in the Library than it was to go home. He was sitting on the bed with his forearms on his knees, hands clasped together in front of him, hunched over, staring at the floor.

Joss sat next to him on the bed but he didn't acknowledge her. She reached over and held his hand while she put her head on his shoulder. John squeezed her hand and tilted his head so that his cheek was resting on the top of her head. They sat quietly like that for several minutes.

"I need to go to Washington; I need to go back," John finally said. "The person who killed my parents is still out there, still killing. I can't let that happen again."

Joss turned her head and pressed a kiss onto his shoulder. "I know and I'm going with you."

"No, you should stay here…."

"I'm going. I belong with my mate." Joss was quite firm.

"What about your job? What about Taylor?" John protested.

"I have a feeling that Finch will take care of everything," she said confidently.

John turned to her and she could see the tears beginning to pool in his eyes. "I shouldn't have left, Joss. I should have stayed and fought for my pack."

Joss was suddenly angry. "What was there to fight for John? Your parents were dead and your pack, your _friends_, those who had known you all your life, thought you were a killer and refused to stand by you. You were grieving and they pushed you away when you needed them most. There was _nothing_ to fight for!" she hissed furiously.

John shook his head, "I spent my entire life learning to be an Alpha so I could take over the pack. They were _my_ responsibility Joss, and I ran away and tried to pretend I wasn't a Wolf."

Joss turned John's face so he was looking into her eyes. "John, you were so young. You have nothing to be ashamed of, unlike your so-called friends," Joss said fiercely. The thought of a young John, alone and rejected by the very people he should have been able to count on in his time of grief made her furious.

John smiled at her, touched by her ferocity on his behalf. Once again he marveled at the fact that this smart, tough, beautiful woman was his mate. He pulled her into a tight embrace and buried his face in her hair, inhaling her jasmine scent. "Let's go catch a murderer."

* * *

Carter was right; Finch did take care of everything, allowing her to accompany Reese to Washington.

It took only about 10 minutes for Finch to hack the NYPD timecard system to show that Joss had requested a week off last month and that request had been approved. Her captain was quite irritated since he didn't remember granting her request, or even _getting_ her request. But, as Fusco, all wide-eyed innocence, pointed out, "If you didn't grant her request, then how'd it get into the system?"

The captain was not an imaginative man, nor a particularly bright one. He had worked his way up the ranks the old-fashioned way: he kissed the right butts and didn't make waves. So when confronted by Fusco's question, he could not come up with a plausible answer other than "I forgot." The captain walked away grumbling under his breath and did not see Fusco's smug smile behind his back.

Taylor was unhappy that he was not going to get to go to Washington; however, getting to stay with Finch instead of his grandma helped take some of the sting out of missing the trip. He loved his grandma, but she had been ill recently and was not up to keeping track of an active teenager. Finch, on the other hand, was the over-indulgent Uncle every teenager wished he had. Whenever he was in charge the phrase "Don't tell your mother" was used a lot.

Finch kept an apartment not too far from Taylor's school stocked with every video game console on the market, all the latest games, and a freezer full of pizza and ice cream. Once the weekend came, Taylor and Shaw happily stayed up all night eating every scrap of junk food in the place and blasting away at bad guys on the screen. Actually Taylor did not eat one scrap of food the entire time his mother and step-father were gone that had any nutritional value whatsoever. And no, he never told his mother.


	2. Chapter 2 - Return

**As usual, if you recognize it from the show I don't own it! **

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**Chapter 2 - Return**

The next day, John and Joss's plane landed at Seattle-Tacoma airport as the sun rose over the Pacific Ocean. John had been quiet, even for him, the entire trip out. He'd pretended to read a book he had borrowed from the library, but Joss noticed he barely turned any pages during the flight that lasted over four hours. John was never a chatterbox, even under the best of circumstances, and Joss was used to his long silences, but this felt different to her. In addition to his usual determination and focus, there was an undercurrent of apprehension that she hadn't felt from him before.

He barely touched the breakfast that they were served on the plane and Joss made a mental note to make sure he ate something after they landed. John did not like to eat much when they were on a case, and that was OK when their cases only lasted a day or so, but this would probably last most of the week and he would need to keep his energy up. She was going to care for her mate no matter what.

They gathered their luggage in almost complete silence and picked up the rental car that Finch had arranged for them. John took the wheel and they started the drive to Puyallup. Joss noticed that the closer they got to the town where John grew up, the tenser he became. She could not help but look over at him with concern, constantly.

John felt Joss's worry and glanced over at her. "What?" he asked curtly. For once, his mate did not take offense at his brusqueness.

"I'm just worried about you, John. You're getting all wound up; I can feel it." She reached over and laid a comforting hand on his thigh.

John pressed his lips together in a thin line. There were times when it was a distinct disadvantage to have a sensitive mate who was so attuned to him. Truthfully, the closer they got to the place of his birth and childhood, the more he wondered if this was a good idea. He had left so long ago; he had no idea what they might be walking into all these years later and he was beginning to wonder if he should have risked bringing his precious mate with him. For all he knew, the entire pack was in on the murder of his parents and they were walking into the proverbial lion's den.

He glanced over at his mate again. She was looking at him with concern in those huge dark eyes of hers, and he looked back to the road before he got lost in them. "I'll be fine. We just don't know what we are walking into here. It could be very dangerous," he said with concern.

Joss rolled her eyes. "I doubt Puyallup can throw anything at us that's worse than what New York City already has," Joss sniffed. John's protectiveness was already manifesting itself and they weren't even in town yet!

John shook his head, "Don't bet on that. You've never lived in a small town; in a lot of ways it's worse. Everyone knows you, everyone knows your business, and there is no place to hide. As strangers, we will stick out like Fusco at a swimsuit competition."

Joss could not help but laugh at that. "Now there's a bad visual!" John gave her a sly grin in response.

They pulled into town shortly after. John drove down the main street while Joss looked around. He began pointing out various landmarks: the grocer's, the drug store, city hall, the high school, and he idly commented on a couple of business that were new since he had last been there. The diner was still there but it had a new name. The drug store too had also changed; it was now part of a national chain.

Joss was surprised by how normal and unremarkable the place looked. Because of what had happened to John all those years ago, Joss had imagined that the little town was a simmering cauldron of hatred and evil. She imagined that the town's exterior would be dark and dreary, reflecting the dark hearts and small minds of the town. She was surprised to see it looked just like every other small town she'd ever been in. It was peaceful, tranquil and completely unremarkable.

John pulled up to a new looking hotel on the edge of town. It wasn't the Waldorf, but it looked to be a good business-class hotel. "This is about the best place in town according to Finch."

"Gotta love the Finch Travel Agency," Joss remarked as she grabbed her bag out of the car.

They checked-in and put their luggage in the room. Joss turned to her mate, "Well, now what?"

John looked grim, "I think we need to take the bull by the horns and let the pack know I'm back. Let's go see Janelle."

"Who's Janelle?" Joss had never heard that name from him before. To be fair, he never talked much about the Wolves of Puyallup and Joss hadn't probed him much on the topic knowing how painful it was for him. He'd had so much pain in his life; she couldn't bring herself to force him to revisit such a huge betrayal again.

"Janelle Patterson was my mother's best friend while I was growing up and she was one of the few Wolves who stood up for me when I was accused of killing my parents. She was like an Aunt to me. She took care of the sale of my parents' farm and she handled everything for my parents' estate so I wouldn't have to return."

Joss looked skeptical. "It's been over twenty years; are you sure she's still here?"

"I had Finch check; she's still in her old house in the Wolf District."

Joss arched an eyebrow, she had never heard of such a thing especially in a town this size. "Wolf District? Seriously?"

John looked at her sadly. "You grew up in the big city Joss. Things were different in the small town. We Wolves kept to ourselves and the rest of the town liked it that way. Just about every Wolf who lived in town lived in one small neighborhood. Janelle still lives there, and once I'm seen going into her house, every Wolf in town will know I'm back within minutes."

Joss took John's hand. "Then let's get going," she said with her usual determination.

* * *

They drove to the Wolf District, a small neighborhood of comfortable middle-class homes consisting of several blocks on a stretch of road on the way out of town. They pulled up in front of a small post-war bungalow and got out of the car. John stood for a minute on the sidewalk just looking at the house.

Joss took his arm, "You OK?"

John looked down at her and smiled with a wistful expression on his face. "I spent a lot of time here growing up. It looks the just the same."

They walked up the steps to the front porch and John knocked firmly. Joss heard movement inside the house and the door was opened by an elderly woman who looked to be in her mid-70's. When she saw John standing there, her eyes opened wide and she put her hand over her mouth.

"John? John Davis?" she asked her eyes filling with tears.

John smiled softly, his eyes filling with affection for the old woman in front of them. "Yes, Aunt Janelle. It's me."

"I…I thought you were dead. No one has heard from you for so long."

John grinned, "Nope, I'm still kicking. May we come in and talk?"

Janelle opened the door wide and waved them in, tears in her eyes, too choked up to speak.

Joss and John entered and sat on the garishly patterned, but comfortable couch. "Coffee?" Janelle asked having finally found her voice.

"Please, thank you."

Janelle vanished into her kitchen and emerged a few minutes later carrying a couple of steaming mugs. John and Joss both politely turned down her offer of cream and sugar. Janelle settled into the armchair across from the couch.

"Janelle, this is my mate, Jocelyn Carter. Joss, Janelle Patterson, my mother's best friend and my unofficial aunt."

"It's so good to meet you," Joss smiled her warmest smile at the woman who had been such a large and positive part of her mate's childhood.

Janelle nodded and smiled back, obviously pleased to meet John's mate, "It's a pleasure to meet you too. I've often wondered over the years if John ever let himself mate. I'm so glad he found someone."

Then Janelle turned her attention back to John "I've thought about you a lot since…what happened. I've often wondered where you were and what had happened to you after you left."

John sipped his coffee, "In a nutshell, I went back to the Army. I did a few tours in Iraq and Afghanistan. I left the service a few years ago and now I work as a protection expert in New York. I'm an Alpha now, Joss and I have a pack in New York."

"Are you happy?" Janelle asked quietly.

John smiled fondly at her, "Yes, very. I love my work, I have a family I love and good friends."

A tear trickled down Janelle's face, "I'm so glad. The last time I saw you, you were so hurt and angry. You swore you would never change into a Wolf again."

John looked down at the floor, "I didn't for years after that. It took me a long time to get over the anger. It didn't have the most positive impact on my life."

"Last I heard of you, you were dating that nasty Sharon Green's little girl. Then you broke up with her to go to war."

John shifted uncomfortably on the couch. "Her name was Jessica. Army life wasn't for her and I couldn't sit out the war while my friends were fighting and dying."

"The Greens didn't like Wolves either as I recall?"

"No, she didn't want a Wolf either, but at the time I didn't want to be a Wolf so it worked out. But I don't think she ever told her mother about us."

Janelle looked over at Joss with a big smile, "But you found a lovely mate John. How did you two meet?"

John smiled, "I was down and out. Joss reached out to me. Then we had some cases that overlapped."

Joss laughed, "He's being too modest, he saved my life when a mob boss tried to have me killed."

"And you have saved my life several times over," John reminded his mate.

Janelle wiped a tear away, "That's as it should be for an Alpha Wolf couple." She turned to Joss, "Thank you for making him happy."

"He's made me very happy too," Joss beamed at the old she-Wolf; it was obvious that Janelle cared for John deeply and had missed him these last twenty-two years.

John leaned forward, "Janelle, we heard about the latest Alphas."

The smile instantly vanished off Janelle's face. "I take it you noticed the similarities with the murder of your parents?"

John nodded, his face hard. "I shouldn't have left when I did. I should have stayed and made sure whoever killed Mom and Dad faced justice. Now they've killed again."

Janelle looked down at her hands in her lap and then looked up again, "I think they have killed more than you think, John," she said softly. "We've lost many pack members since you left."

"Tell me," John growled in the commanding manner of the Alpha Wolf.

"Several years after your parents, we lost Deke Williams. They said he was drunk when he smashed his car against a tree…."

"But Deke didn't drink," John finished the sentence for her.

Janelle nodded. "You remembered. No, I had known Deke for over twenty years; never saw him drink anything stronger than punch."

"Who else?" John snarled.

"The next one to die was a Wolf by the name of Jackson Holt. He came to town after you left; I think he was a friend of Matt Ellison's. He was only in town for a few years before he drowned in the river.

"Several years later, Janie Powell and Karen Rodriquez drowned too. Karen had mated with Mark Ellison, but she and Janie had gone to the river to pick berries by themselves. Mark found the bodies floating face down in the river. The sheriff said that it looked like one of them slipped and fell in and the other one went in after her friend. The current was cold, fast, and deep, and they must've drowned quickly.

"Remember Stan LeBlanc? He mated with Janet Milnar and they had a couple of cubs. The entire family was wiped out when their minivan went off the road on Kyle Mountain Road. It plunged down the side of the mountain and burst into flames when it hit the bottom of the canyon.

"The police think Deke, Jackson, Janie, Karen and the LeBlancs all died in accidents, that it's pure coincidence that so many have died."

John felt sick. Janelle's tone of voice told him that she clearly did not think they were accidents, and he knew that Janelle, while she looked like everyone's favorite grandma, was one cagey Wolf. If she didn't buy it, there was good reason not to. John got up, walked to the windows and stood staring out to the quiet street with his back to the women while he calmed his anger.

"That's a lot of accidents for a small pack," Joss said, putting air quotes around the word accidents.

Janelle nodded in approval. "I take it you don't believe in coincidences, Jocelyn?"

Joss shook her head, "I'm a Homicide detective in New York City. On my beat, coincidences usually turn out to be murder."

"I shouldn't have left," John snarled from his spot at the window.

Janelle shook her head while her faded blue eyes flashed with unexpected anger. "No, John, I think you would be dead too if you hadn't left town. I'm sure they would have killed you if you had stayed and tried to claim your birthright by taking over the pack.

"As a matter of fact, I think you should leave now and take your beautiful mate with you. You're happy, you've built a good life, don't risk it by staying here. This pack turned it's back on you in your hour of need; don't stick your neck out for them," Janelle finished bitterly.

John turned, "Not everyone turned their backs on me. You never did. There were others."

Janelle snorted in contempt, "The whole Pack should have been behind you; you were by rights our Alpha. The sheriff cleared you almost immediately. You owe this pack NOTHING."

John turned and looked at her in surprise. He could never recall seeing the mild-mannered Janelle get so upset before.

But Janelle was not done yet, "Whoever killed the other Wolves is still here, still killing. And now you're back. Do you really think they won't come after you and Jocelyn?" She finished with tears in her eyes.

Joss patted the agitated she Wolf's hand, trying to calm the old woman. "It will be alright Janelle. John is former Special Forces and I'm NYPD homicide, we're used to being in the line of fire. We do this every day. We know what we are getting into; we've caught a lot of killers together."

John left the window and knelt down by Janelle's chair, taking her other hand in between his hands. "I'll be fine, I promise. But I can't let the Wolf who killed my parents keep killing anymore. What kind of Alpha would I be if I did?"

Janelle looked at John teary-eyed, "Everett is the sheriff now; you may not have a choice. He may try to stop you."

John's face was immediately the expressionless mask that Joss knew meant he was angry. "Who's Everett?" she asked.

"Everett Ellison was my best friend growing up," John growled.

Janelle turned to Joss not bothering to hide her tears, "Everett and John were inseparable growing up. Everett's father Matt was one of the Wolves who was most adamant in believing John was guilty and Everett took his father's word over John's."

"They denounced me in front of the entire pack," John said softly, not bothering to hide the hurt in his voice. He hadn't thought about that night in years, how he had stood in the semi-circle of the pack while Matt flung accusations at him. Some pack members were silent, some defended John, but the majority agreed with Matt and he was loudly told to leave and never return. He remembered thinking that it couldn't be happening, that his friends couldn't be turning their backs on him right after his parents were murdered. This was not his pack, this was an angry mob, and the accusation swept through the mob like a virus. The memory stung him like it was yesterday, and he closed his eyes briefly to will it away.

Janelle's lip lifted into a snarl, "Matt is a bully, and he bullied Everett mercilessly believing that it would make Everett tough. Everett has been trying to please his dad his whole life, but he never will. Everett reminds Matt too much of his dead mate Patty."

John took over the narrative, "Patty was killed by a drunk driver when we were ten years old and Matt never recovered. The driver got off very light, Matt always said it was because Patty was Wolf. It made Matt very bitter."

"Was Matt right? Did the driver get off easy because he killed a Wolf?" Joss asked, shocked.

"Probably. But that's no reason to bully your own son because he looks like his dead mother," Janelle snapped. "To make it worse, Matt blatantly favors Everett's younger siblings, Mark and Marie. They're twins and just as nasty as Matt."

Joss rolled her eyes, "Lovely family."

"If you stay in town you will have to deal with them," Janelle warned them

John's face was hard, "Don't worry about us. We've dealt with worse."

"Something else you should know, John," Janelle hesitated, not sure how John would take the news. John looked at her with one eyebrow raised. "Everett mated with Lisa."

John chuckled, "Poor Everett. He's welcome to her." He saw the puzzled look on his mate's face and chuckled again. "Lisa was my girlfriend in high school. She thought she was going to be the Alpha bitch of the pack, and she really didn't like it when I enlisted and left town. She felt cheated out of her rightful position."

Janelle giggled, "Oh dear, she was furious! Poor Lisa, she's beautiful on the outside, not so much on the inside. I guess she figured that the sheriff was a good substitute for the Alpha."

John looked tenderly at Joss, "Everett can have her. I found my true mate."


	3. Chapter 3 - Midnight Visist

**Chapter 3 – Midnight Visit**

John and Joss left Janelle's and drove to the diner in the center of town for an early dinner. John looked around as they entered, "I don't remember it being this shabby before."

Joss smiled, "It's been over twenty years, babe."

John gave her a crooked grin, "I remember it being pretty shabby, but this is ridiculous."

Joss looked and felt around with her Wolf senses. "I don't feel any other Wolves in here. I take it this is not a Wolf hangout?"

"No, we should be pretty incognito here."

They ate dinner and decided to walk around the downtown business district. They strolled the streets hand in hand, just enjoying each other's company, doing something they normally didn't get to do together in New York. They browsed a couple of shops that were still open, looking for a gift for Taylor. It felt good to do a few normal things despite the fact that their trip here was not a pleasure trip. For all they knew, this might be their last chance to relax this week.

Joss purchased a University of Washington shirt for Taylor and they started walking back to the car. John opened the door for Joss and as she started to get into the car he gave her a very gentle kiss. She smiled back at him with her eyes shining. His intense blue eyes met her soft brown ones and the look he gave left no doubt in her mind what he was going to do to her as soon as they got to their room.

As John drove, Joss's hand moved to his leg and she began stroking his upper thigh. John shifted slightly in the seat and growled, "Joss!" in a deadly tone of voice as her touch began to arouse him, which is of course, what she had intended to do.

She smiled a flirty smile. "What's the matter, Alpha?" she teased. "Can't handle it?"

John growled again, a growl that came from deep in his chest. "The question is can you handle me when we get back to the room?" John gave her a particularly predatory grin.

Joss met his Wolf with her own. "Let that Big Bad Wolf out to play, Alpha. This bitch is ready," she challenged him while her hand moved up to stroke him through his pants. John groaned as her clever fingers worked their magic through the fabric and his hands tightened on the steering wheel so hard that his fingerprints were probably permanently embossed there.

"I'm going to make you pay for that," the Alpha Wolf snarled softly and deadly, showing his teeth while he struggled to focus.

His mate was not intimidated in the least. "Please do," she purred in a soft tone of voice that made it clear not only could she take what he was about to dish out, she was looking forward to it.

John thought he was lucky he didn't explode before they got back to the hotel.

He parked and then dragged her through the lobby, breathing heavily with lust and want. He had her arm in a vise-like grip but she wasn't resisting him at all. Her breath was coming in deep, short gasps and she stared at him, her pupils dilated with desire. John couldn't even look back at her; he was afraid if he saw how badly she wanted him, he would take her right there on one of the couches in the lobby.

Once they made it to the door of their room at the end of a quiet hallway on the first floor, John had to use his Army sniper training to calm his breathing and shaking hands enough that he could slide the key card into the narrow slot to get the door open. Joss didn't help by kissing and nipping at the hollow at the base of his throat through his open collar while he was trying to accomplish the task.

As soon as they heard the click of the door unlocking, they fell into the room and John pinned her against the wall just inside the door while he ravaged her mouth with his. She kissed him back just as fiercely, raking her nails through the hair on the back of his head, holding him in place against her.

John finally won control by sliding his hands down her sides until he could grip her ass as he ground her pelvis against this rock hard erection. She broke the kiss, her head falling back against the wall with a moan.

Their clothes practically fell into a pile at their feet.

John reached down and pulled Joss's left leg up and hooked it around his hips so his cock could find her entrance. He poised himself there while he looked down into her eyes. They paused for a few seconds, just staring into the depths into each other's souls. Then Joss whispered, "Take me, Alpha."

He took her right there against the wall. With one hard thrust, he buried himself deeply in her. "Ohhhhhh," she cried. Her eyes closed and her full lips parted slightly and she completely surrendered herself to him.

John thrust deeply and hard into her, while watching her face. He loved watching her while they made love; her face was so expressive. He loved seeing the little furrow that appeared between her eyebrows as she built to climax. He loved knowing that he was the one who could make his normally in-control and in-charge detective completely surrender the tight reins she normally kept on herself. "Johnnnnnn," she sighed and he kissed that little furrow.

He was so absorbed in making love to his mate, he barely noticed when she possessively sank her teeth into his shoulder right where it met his neck. "Joss, oh god," he groaned. "You feel so good."

He thrust harder and deeper into her with animalistic grunts while she moaned and begged him not to stop. He felt her walls tightening around his cock and knew she was close. "Cum for me Joss," He said softly. "My mate, you're so hot, so wet."

Joss stiffened and her eyes closed as her head fell back and her mouth opened in a groan of pure pleasure. Her body clamped down him with a vise-like grip as she cried out her orgasm. Her head dropped to his shoulder as he stilled his rhythm; he didn't want to cum yet. He wasn't done with her, he wanted more. He always wanted more when it came to her.

After a minute, she coyly looked up at him and smiled. He smiled back and gently nuzzled her ear. He carried her to bed and fell on top of her as she giggled happily. "I'm not done with you yet," John purred into her ear while he nibbled on the lobe.

"Bring it," she ran her nails down his back, "I can take it."

"Oh, I know you will." He slid out of her and she whimpered. He slid down her body and began worshiping her breasts. Joss gasped as he teased her nipples and her eyes rolled back into her head. She ran her hands through his hair as he pleasured her.

John smiled against her breast. He could feel her pleasure through their mating bond and nearly burst with his need for her.

He reached down and began rubbing her already tender clit lightly with his fingers. "Oh god… oh John….Oh please, " his mate gasped.

"Oh please what, my love?" John asked, gently kissing his way back up her body.

Joss was unable to answer; she was panting too hard. John continued touching her and kissing her and within a few minutes she was building to climax again. Just as she went over the edge, John returned her bite, biting her at the junction of the shoulder and the neck and then soothing it with his tongue. He always wanted to keep the scar that marked her as his fresh. John was not a jealous or possessive Wolf, but he wanted the world to know she was his mate.

He entered her again, once more marveling at how well they fit together. He'd bedded many women over his forty plus years, but none of them felt like this, felt so right. She was perfect for him, and he for her. He began thrusting deep into her softness, keeping a steady, even pace, trying to drag the lovemaking out as long as he could.

John arched his back trying to penetrate her deeper and deeper and she locked her legs around him holding him deeply inside her body. Steadily and lovingly they built to orgasm together. They came in sync, moaning the other's name.

John collapsed on top of her, struggling for breath while he came down off his high. Her legs slid off his back like they were made of Jello and she lay quietly under him. John realized that she probably couldn't catch her breath with his weight on top off her. He rolled off of her and she snuggled up to his side with a contented sigh. John held her against his body and pressed a kiss on top of her head, "I love you."

"I love you too." She sounded tired, but happy, as they settled down for the night

* * *

John was at that stage where he was just starting to slip into a deep restful sleep when Joss suddenly sat up with a look on her face that told him she had detected the presence of another Wolf. John was instantly on the alert, visitors this time of night were never good news even at the best of times, and they were basically in hostile territory behind enemy lines right now.

"Is someone out there?" he asked quietly.

She nodded tensely, "Just one. He's right outside the door. Whose turn is it?"

"Yours, I'm too big to fit through that dinky bathroom window."

Joss growled with displeasure, threw on her robe quickly, grabbed her gun, and vanished into the bathroom. John got out of bed, yanked on some pajama pants, walked over the door, and counted to ten. He opened the door to find Sheriff Everett Ellison standing there with his gun held at face level.

"Hello John. Long time no see. I thought you were dead," Everett smirked at him.

John smirked right back, "You didn't have to go to all this trouble, Ev. You could have just knocked."

Everett kept the gun steady, "I like having the advantage, especially when I'm talking with someone I think is a murderer."

John smirked at his ex-friend, "So do I, Ev. Right now my mate, who is ex-Army and a current New York City Police Homicide detective, is standing behind you with her service weapon pointed at your head."

"Hello Everett, I've heard so much about you!" Joss gushed from behind their visitor with mock enthusiasm while she held her gun only a few feet from his head.

John watched as the expression on Everett's face went from surprise, to anger, and then to resignation. John held out his hand and Everett placed his gun in it and put his hands up. John took the gun, removed the clip and broke it down while Joss marched Everett into the room and shut the door behind her.

"So, Ev, old buddy, what brings you here in the middle of the night, armed and dangerous?" John asked while he leaned casually against the dresser.

"Just checking out the rumor that a murderer is back in town, like a good sheriff should," Everett snarled.

"If you were a good sheriff, you would know that John was exonerated within days of his parent's death," Joss snapped.

"What would you know about it?" Everett shot back.

Joss picked up her badge from the dresser and showed it to him, "NYPD Homicide. I probably investigate more murders in a week than you do all year."

"Oh, so you came here to tell me my business?" Everett snarled, leveling a hard glare in her direction.

"Looks like someone _needs_ to tell you your business," Joss sniffed in disdain.

John decided it was time to intervene before Joss ripped the sheriff to shreds. It was pretty obvious Everett was in over his head and didn't realize it. "Did you have a specific purpose for coming here other than to try and impress me with your gun?" John asked bringing Everett's attention to him.

"I want to know why you came back after all this time? Why now?" Everett asked, still hostile.

John leveled his full Alpha stare at Everett. Joss half expected Everett to burst into flames John was staring at him so hard. "Because I heard about the Hunters. Because twenty two years ago I let myself be run out of town by a lie, and someone has had free reign to kill in this town because of it. I came back because I can't let anyone else die for my mistake."

Everett laughed, "What other murders are you talking about?" He was trying to sound dismissive, but Joss felt his surprise and nervousness. Everett, it seemed, had reached the same conclusion about all those "accidents" just as Janelle had. Joss realized that Everett was not as stupid as he was pretending to be and she was suddenly on the alert. He knew something and Joss was going to find out what it was.

"You know exactly what John is talking about, don't you?" she said. "You already figured that the mortality rate is too high for a small pack like yours. You know that John didn't kill his parents, so why don't you stop screwing around and let us help you?"

Everett looked at Joss in shock, while John shot his mate a sly wink. Everett licked his lips nervously and fidgeted like a teenager in the principal's office. Joss had completely taken the wind out of his sails.

John and Joss waited patiently while Everett struggled with himself and finally he spoke.

"You're in law enforcement so I'm going to lay it on the line here because I think you'll understand the position I'm in. You're right, I don't think all those accidents were accidents and I don't think John killed his parents." Everett turned to look at Reese, "I realized a couple of years after you left town that you couldn't and wouldn't do such a thing, John. I'm sorry for my part in the whole mess, but I didn't have the stones to go against my dad back then."

Reese nodded and simply said, "Thank you." But Joss could feel her mate's relief. She could have kissed Everett for the gift he had just given John.

Everett shuffled his feet. "So when I got hired as a deputy, I got to thinking that if John hadn't killed them, who had? I started snooping, but the trail had gone cold, and I was too inexperienced. I was stuck. Then Deke died. Then Jackson Holt after him."

John looked at his friend, "You realized you had a serial killer on your hands."

Everett sighed; it was obvious that he had been carrying this burden for a very long time. He sat down heavily in a chair and rubbed his temples. "Yeah, but I couldn't prove they were murdered, whoever did it made it look like accidents. The sheriff at the time closed the cases; what was one more dead Wolf?

"Once I became sheriff a few years ago, I still couldn't stop it. Me and my best deputy investigated the Wolf deaths, but we could never find any evidence."

"So every few years you watched another member of your pack die and you couldn't do anything to stop it? That must have been hard," Joss said quietly. She thought of her pack at home and she understood what a burden Everett had been carrying for all these years. All her anger at him for how he'd treated John all those years ago melted away and all she could feel for him was sympathy. He was a fellow Wolf and law officer who had seen too many friends die.

She glanced over at her mate and felt his empathy directed at Everett too. Whatever Everett had done to him all those years ago was quickly forgiven. John, too, had seen many friends die and he shared his old friend's pain.

Everett rubbed the bridge of his nose tiredly. He seemed to have aged several years in the last few minutes. "The worst part is, I'm pretty sure it's another Wolf doing the killing. Every Pack Night I look around and wonder who the killer is and who's going to die next.

"I came here to try to get you to leave town. There is no doubt in my mind that you became a target as soon as you got here, and I don't want any more deaths. I don't have the resources to protect you."

Joss looked directly at Everett, "Let us help you. We do this every day; we have access to resources that you don't. You don't have to do this alone anymore."

"You'll be in danger the whole time you are here; I can't allow that," Everett said.

John clamped a hand on his friend's shoulder. "We're used to it. We knew we would be targets when we decided to come."

Joss chimed in, "Besides, you're in danger too, Everett. If you get too close to the killer they will come after you. So at least we will all have each other's backs."

Everett looked up at them sadly, "I don't suppose I could talk you out of this?"

Reese shook his head, "I _have_ to end this."

Ellison looked into Reese's eyes and saw the grim determination there. He nodded sadly, "Alright, I know I can't talk you out of this. But whatever you find, you bring to me, got it? This is my turf and I don't like cowboys."

John smirked, "Of course, Everett. Whatever you say." Joss rolled her eyes, but kept quiet.


	4. Chapter 4 - The Sheriff

**Thanks for all the great reviews! I have tried to respond to everyone who has a login individually to thank you for your support. To all the Guest reviewers, Thanks! I wish I could respond to you too!**

* * *

**Chapter 4 - The Sheriff**

The next morning at breakfast Joss told John that she had an appointment to visit Sheriff Scott Berke, the man who'd been Sheriff when John's parents were killed and the man who cleared John of any involvement in the murders. He was retired and living with his daughter in Tacoma.

"Do you want to come with me?" she asked.

"I should stay here and be seen. I have a couple more people I want to talk to. Besides, I think Berke might be more comfortable talking to a fellow law enforcement officer without the son of the victims around. Berke was a good man and good sheriff; he'll be honest with you."

Joss stood up and gave her mate a kiss, "I'd tell you to try not to piss anyone off, but I know you better than that."

John kissed his mate back with a smirk on his face, "And that's why you love me."

* * *

Joss drove to a home on the outskirts of Tacoma where the man who had been Sheriff, and in charge of the investigation when John's parents had been murdered, was now living in peaceful retirement with his daughter and her family. Joss was ushered out onto the deck of the home that overlooked Puget Sound.

Sheriff Scott Berke was a white-haired man who looked to be in his late 60's or early 70's. Joss's Wolf senses were unable to read him, so he wasn't Wolf. He was sitting in a comfortable looking wooden armchair, looking out over the Sound. As soon as he spied Joss he hopped up, surprisingly spry for a man of his age, and shook her hand.

"Delighted to meet a fellow officer!" he exclaimed. Joss liked him instantly.

He waved Joss to the seat next his and they sat down. The ex-Sheriff poured Joss a glass of lemonade.

"So you're John Davis's mate. I thought he was dead. No one had heard from him for so many years."

"Yeah, we're getting that lot," Joss said wryly.

"Well, I'm glad I was wrong. He seems to have done very well for himself," Berke said looking Joss over with a smile.

"I'm flattered,' she laughed.

"Good, that was the point." Berke smiled back. "But I'm guessing you aren't here to collect compliments."

"No, I'm not, but they are appreciated." Joss took a deep breath, "Have you heard about Dave and Trisha Hunter?"

Berke nodded somberly, "Yeah, it's a shame. I hear they were good people."

"Did it strike you as odd…"

Berke finished the sentence for her, "…that they died in the same manner as John's parents? Damn straight it did." He looked out over the Sound again, "That's why you're here, that's why John finally came back, isn't it?"

"Yeah. When John heard about the Hunters, he had to come back."

"Please tell him that I'm sorry about what happened after his parents died." Joss could see the genuine regret in the man's watery grey eyes.

"What **did** happen? John never really understood. He still doesn't."

Berke gazed down into his glass of lemonade and swirled the ice around. "You read my report on the murder of his parents?"

"Yeah, I have. But I'm more interested in what wasn't in the report. Why did you think his parents were killed? Why did his friends run him out of town afterwards?"

Berke nodded, "I understand. I think it's going to take a Wolf to solve this case anyway. I'll bet my life someone in that pack knows what happened."

Joss leaned forward. "Tell me what you know, please."

Berke glanced at her and then back down into his drink. "Honestly, I don't know much more than what was in my reports. I'm convinced it was Wolf on Wolf violence and someone in that pack knows more than they are willing to say."

"Do you think someone in their own pack killed them?"

"Yes," the sheriff stated flatly.

Joss got a chill from that simple little word. She was stunned by how sure Berke was. But if it was an inside job, it would certainly explain a lot. Berke struck her as an intelligent officer, free from anti-Wolf bias. If he was this positive, he had to have some good reasons. "You sound pretty positive. You know killing your Alpha is considered a terrible crime in Wolf culture?"

Berke nodded, "I do. I think that was part of the problem. The deaths were just too horrible for the pack to understand and anyone who knew or suspected anything, just didn't want to believe it."

"But they were willing to believe that John had something to do with it, despite the fact he was exonerated by you, " Joss probed.

Berke's eyes met hers, "I think that was part of it, quite frankly. If the killer could pin it on John, no one would look for the true killer any further."

"But John? He'd known those pack members all his life, they knew him! He was going to be their Alpha someday. How could they think he would do something like that?" Joss was trying desperately to understand.

Berke looked thoughtful, "Now, you know I'm not Wolf, but I like to think that I knew the locals pretty well and considered most of them friends, so keep that in mind as you listen to me. The Wolves of Puyallup are a pretty insular group. Even in that small town they kept to themselves as much as possible. They lived in the same neighborhood; they socialized together; they married each other.

"John never fit that mold. After high school, he left and went into the military. He wanted to see the world, to get out there. A lot of the pack, including his girlfriend Lisa and best friend Everett, didn't understand."

Berke took a sip of his lemonade. "John was too big for that little town. Not that he was arrogant, but I could tell he was meant for something more. I'm sure I was not the only one who saw it. But that bred some resentment."

"But to think he would kill his parents?" Joss was still struggling to understand.

Berke paused for a moment; he seemed to be searching for the right words. "He'd been gone for the better part of four years by then. Oh, he came home on leave now and again, but he'd changed. He was basically a stranger to them at that point. And they were angry with him for becoming a stranger.

Berke cocked his head to look at her. "You're from New York, how many members of your pack are from somewhere else?"

Joss was surprised by the question but realized that Berke had asked it for a reason. She thought about it for a few minutes and then shrugged, "Oh, I don't know, probably about half of them I would say. I've never really thought about it to tell you the truth."

"Believe me, in Puyallup, they think about it and they circle the wagons against strangers. I'll bet you and John were probably in town only about ten minutes before the entire pack had been alerted to your presence."

"Why are they so closed off?"

"Puyallup isn't New York. Discrimination against Wolves was rampant until fairly recently and they more or less developed a siege mentality. There are still plenty of folks who wouldn't let their daughter marry a Wolf, and 'No Wolves Allowed' was a common sign not too long ago.

"The Sheriff before me loved to hassle them. I was considered quite liberal because I told my deputies that they couldn't pull over a Wolf unless they actually did something wrong."

"Wolves were harassed?" Joss sighed.

"Yeah. I put a stop to that. Once it became illegal to discriminate on the basis of being a Wolf, it put a stop to the signs, but there are a few places where they still aren't really welcome. One of the florist shops in town just last year refused to take on a wedding because the groom was Wolf."

Joss caught herself in a snarl, and immediately pressed her lips together to repress it. Berke caught her and laughed, "It's OK, Detective. Any right thinking person would be angry at that."

Joss flashed an apologetic grin at the sheriff, "Sorry, I actually haven't been Wolf for very long, just over a year. I'm still having some control issues."

"John turned you?" Berke was quite curious.

Joss nodded, "I was dying, I had a gunshot wound in the gut and I was bleeding out. John turned me to save my life."

Berke gave her mischievous grin, "Now that is one beautiful love story!"

Joss laughed, "Whether it is or not, it's our love story!"

Berke smiled at her and then looked out over the Sound, his mood grew pensive, "It's too bad Conrad and Laura never met you. I'll bet they would have been happy for their boy. I'd like to think I knew Conrad well enough to say he would have loved you."

Joss leaned over and laid her hand on the sheriff's forearm as it rested on the arm of the chair, "Tell me what happened. Not what's in your report, but what you think happened."

Berke continued to stare off over the Sound while he spoke, "I wish I knew, Jocelyn. Conrad and Laura were strong, strong Wolves, it would have taken a lot to overcome them. They were both born Alphas, both came from Old Bloodlines. As you know they were both dead before the explosion."

Joss nodded and rattled off the facts from the coroner's report, "No signs of smoke inhalation in the lungs, extensive stab wounds to the chest. The explosion was probably just to cover the assassin's tracks."

Berke sighed, "I think Laura died first. Conrad had been in town earlier that day running errands, apparently he dropped by to see me at the station, but I was in court. I think Laura was dead before Conrad got home. She fought like a tiger, she had extensive defensive wounds on her. I think Conrad came home shortly after. Who knows, maybe he felt something was wrong at home, they did have strong bond. He also had extensive defensive wounds on him so I'm sure there had to be more than one killer and they had to be Wolf.

"There wasn't a lot left of the house after the explosion, but we did a find a knife that matched the wounds on Conrad in the rubble. There were some fingerprints on the handle that we were never able to identify. They weren't Laura's or Conrad's or John's; I am sure they belong to one of the murderers. There was another set on the front door; we never figured out who they belonged to either. "

Berke turned and looked at Carter, "It was personal Jocelyn. Both of them had multiple stab wounds, many more than was needed to kill them. Nothing was taken from the house that we could find, not that there was a lot left after the explosion. Someone in that pack knows something, you're going to have to figure out who it is and lean on them, hard."

Joss squeezed the old sheriff's arm, "Where do I start?"

Berke looked Joss straight in the eye, "Matt Ellison. He resented the Davises, because they were the Alphas. His boy, Everett, was John's best friend but it was obvious that John was the Alpha and Everett the Beta. Matt didn't like that. He can't stand to be second to anyone; he always had to have the last word, even when the other person didn't even want to argue."

Joss nodded, "Jealousy is a strong motivator."

"When I questioned pack members after the murder they were scared, and Matt was well-known as a mean son of bitch, no offense intended."

Joss laughed, "None taken." Then she got serious, "What do you think was Matt Ellison's involvement?"

Berke shook his head, "I'm not sure, but I do know that without Conrad Davis to keep him in line, he kept the rest of the pack cowed until they picked a new Alpha couple from out of town."

"Who was that?"

"Trisha Hunter's parents, Cora and Sam. Sam was a born Alpha, but his older brother inherited his parent's pack, so he was looking for his own."

"Where are Cora and Sam now?"

"Dead. They died in a plane crash going back east to visit family a few years ago, and Trisha and Dave took over the pack since Trisha was the first born of the Alpha couple."

"Who takes over the pack now?"

Berke shrugged, "Trisha and Dave didn't have any kids yet, and even if they had they would be too young anyway. They will have to pick an Alpha from the pack or bring in one from outside. I hear Everett is throwing his hat into the ring so to speak."

Joss checked her watch and realized that it was time for her to go. She'd promised John to be back by a certain time. "Is there anything else you can tell me?"

Berke shook his head, "Just watch your back and John's. Whoever did all this is vicious and will not hesitate to kill again. And please, solve this case. You know how us cops all have at least one case that follows you, that you can't let go of?"

Joss nodded, "Yeah I got couple myself."

Berke sighed, "This one was mine. Conrad was my friend and it hurt to see his son treated so shabbily."

Joss smiled, "I think I can promise you that John and I will solve this."

"Thanks, Jocelyn. Take care now." Berke escorted Joss out to her car and he waved as she drove off.


	5. Chapter 5 - Old Friends and Enemies

**Chapter 5 – Old Friends and Enemies**

After Joss drove off for her appointment with Sheriff Berke, John decided to go visit his old friend Margaret "Mags" Griffin. She had been part of the group of friends he had hung out with in high school along with Everett and Lisa, and one of the few members of the pack who had not given into the mob mentality that night so long ago.

When John walked into The Den Grill and Bar, the middle-aged woman behind the bar looked up and her mouth fell open and her eyes grew wide. "John?" she gasped out. "I heard you were back, but I didn't believe it! I thought you were dead!"

John grinned at her, "Hello to you too, Mags."

Mags Griffin walked around the bar and gave John a big hug. "I'm sorry, I'm just so surprised to see you, but I'm very pleased!"

She turned and yelped at a young man in his early twenties who resembled her, obviously her son, "Sonny, I need to sit with an old friend, take over for me will ya?"

"Sure thing Ma," the young man cheerfully replied with a wave of his hand. John was struck by how much Sonny's smile looked like his mother's back when he and Mags had been that age.

"You have a son," John said a bit wistfully while Mags pulled him to a back booth.

She grinned at him, "Three actually. Sonny, his real is name is Todd, is the oldest. He's twenty-one. I also have Chadd who's eighteen and Steve who's sixteen."

"Sounds like you have a full house. How's Les?" John couldn't help but grin at his friend.

"He's doing good. He's a supervisor now for the utility. He's out of town overseeing the installation of a new line. He'll be home Saturday if you are staying that long."

John's grin vanished. "I'm not sure he would be as happy to see me as you are," he said quietly.

"He came around after you left John. He thinks you were innocent. He would like to see you, I'm sure."

The conversation paused while Sonny dropped off a couple of cups of coffee. Mags looked over at John, "It's not a coincidence that you showed up here right after we had another Alpha pair die in a gas explosion, is it?"

John nodded, "No, it's not. I heard about the Hunters and I decided it was time to come back."

Mags sipped her coffee, "Can't say I'm surprised. Do you want to take over the pack?"

John shook his head, "No, I have a pack in New York. I just want to make sure the person who killed my parents and the Hunters doesn't get the chance to hurt anyone else."

Mags sighed regretfully, "You're a true Alpha, John. I'm so sorry we ran you off, we could have used you around here."

"How so?"

"Two words, Matt Ellison," Mags spat the name out with undisguised contempt.

John set his coffee cup down and focused his full attention on Mags. "I've been hearing that name a lot. What can you tell me?"

"Matt Ellison wanted to be Alpha after you left, but no one likes Matt, so we brought in Trisha Hunter's parents instead. They were good Alphas and kept Matt in check. After they died and Trisha and Dave took over the pack, he took advantage of their inexperience and he was starting to get out of control again. Mark and Marie turned out to be just like their dad, bullies both of them. Everett is the only decent one of that family, thank God he turned like his mom and not his dad."

"But everyone is afraid of Matt and the twins," John prodded.

"Yep, and will be until we get a new Alpha in here. Trisha and Dave didn't have any cubs yet, and even if they had they would be too young to be Alphas, so we will have to vote on new Alphas. Everett is putting his name in as a candidate, and lot of people like the idea of having the sheriff for an Alpha, but a lot of people also don't like having anyone connected to Matt as the Alpha. Everett always had problems standing up to his old man and we need someone who will keep Matt on the straight and narrow."

John nodded, "I remember."

Mags shrugged, "We will probably have to bring in someone from outside like we did with Trisha's parents after you left. If you know of any born Alphas looking for a pack, send 'em our way."

* * *

Later, John left the bar after giving Mags a hug and promised to stay in touch. "I'm not good at keeping in touch", he protested, but Mags would not take that for answer. "You better get good then, John Davis. Or I will fly to New York and kick your Alpha ass."

John decided to walk around the center of town for bit. By now he was sure the entire pack knew he was back; he thought it might be interesting to see who would come looking for him. He wanted to be easy to find.

He didn't have long to wait.

He stopped in the local coffee shop for a cup of coffee. He also purchased a local paper and settled at a corner table to sip his coffee and get caught up on the local news.

"Hello, John," came a less than friendly female voice.

John looked up see to a tall, blonde woman, his age, with a hard expression on her face. John leaned back in his chair with his trademark smirk, "Hello, Lisa. It's been a long time."

"Not long enough," Lisa snapped. "What are you doing here? Is it true you brought your _mate_?"

"I missed you, too," John replied, completely unruffled by the hostile reception from the woman he had once been expected to mate with. He took a second to take her in. The years had been kind to her, Lisa was everything a she Wolf should be; tall, lean, graceful and powerful in her movements. They had been a gorgeous couple in high school, the pride of the pack. Too bad it was only skin deep.

Lisa sat down across from him, her hard expression did not change. "What are you doing here?" she demanded again.

"I heard about the Hunters and the similarities with my parents were quite striking. I decided it was time to return."

Lisa lifted her lip showing her fangs. "Oh, so you decide to blow into town and start investigating? What about Everett?"

"What about him? I do this for a living, Lisa. My _mate_," Lisa flinched visibility at the mention of a mate, "Is a New York City homicide detective and one of the best investigators around."

John deliberately shifted in his chair, causing his collar to fall open enough so that Lisa could see Joss's mating bite from their lovemaking the night before. Lisa's eyes narrowed and her upper lip curled up in a snarl again. John's smirk only grew wider and his eyes danced with amusement.

"You have some nerve bringing her here," Lisa snapped.

"Why? She is my mate regardless of how some might feel about it," John replied smoothly, but his eyes were suddenly glacial. "She wanted to come with me."

That jab hit home, and Lisa was unable to meet his eyes. "You left, you have no right to come back and act superior to those of us who stayed."

John smirked again. "There is nothing wrong with staying, if you stay for the right reasons and not out of fear of the unknown."

Lisa glared back for a few seconds. "This is my home; I saw no reason to leave," she said sullenly, breaking eye contact and looking down at the table.

"My pack thought I was a murderer who was capable of killing my own parents, so I saw no reason to stay." John decided not to mention that he actually did become a murderer after that. That would just be too complicated and was more information than he was willing to share.

"You left before your parents were killed, when you went into the military!" Lisa hissed_. _

_So that's what this was really about_, John thought. Lisa was still nurturing the hurt from John leaving town all those years ago. It seemed she was still the same small, self-centered person she was in high school.

John kept his voice even, "I had every intention of returning, I just wanted to be part of something important, bigger than just me. You never understood that."

Lisa folded her arms across her chest and glared at him, "You never would have come back."

John got up from the table and then bent down to whisper in Lisa's ear. "We'll never know, will we?" John smiled sweetly and walked out without another word, leaving Lisa fuming.

* * *

John walked down the street sipping his coffee, feeling quite good about the way things were going so far. It seemed his visit was already shaking things up. He wondered how Joss was doing. He made a mental note to take her to visit Mags later.

As John was about to step off the curb to cross the street, a large late-model pickup truck shot by him only a few inches away, forcing him to leap back. He saw Matt Ellison at the wheel, giving him what could only be described as the stink eye. John watched the truck drive down the street and turn the corner.

John frowned; that was one large, expensive truck and he remembered the Ellisons as constantly struggling financially. Matt owned an auto mechanic shop, but despite his talent for fixing cars, many people in town didn't like to go there because Matt was foul-tempered and unpredictable. So, how could Matt afford such an expensive truck?

John walked to the end of the street and turned the same corner he had just seen Matt turn; he could see Ellison's garage and it wasn't exactly bustling with activity. It looked just as he remembered it - small and empty.

John watched as Ellison got out of his truck and went inside carrying a package. John rapidly walked to the repair shop and walked in.

"Hello, Matt," he greeted Ellison with the expression that Joss liked to call his "professional smirk" firmly planted on his face.

Ellison turned from opening the package and saw Reese standing there. Ellison laughed in the most condescending manner possible, "Well, well, it's the Davis pup. I thought you were dead. So you came back."

Reese didn't change his expression, "Yes, I did. I missed the town, missed the pack, missed all my good friends."

Ellison fully turned to face John, and despite the fact that he was trying to pretend he was in charge, he licked his lips, betraying his nervousness. "Does Everett know you're back?"

John nodded cheerfully, "Saw him last night; we had a nice chat."

John's cheerfulness was taking a toll on Ellison's nerves. "What are you doing here?" he demanded.

John sensed he was winning the conversation. "I told you I missed everyone."

Matt showed Reese his fangs. "Well, no one missed you."

"Now my feelings are hurt," John said jovially, clearly unimpressed with Ellison.

"Get out," Ellison hissed.

John wiped the smirk off his face, his face now assuming the cold mask of the CIA assassin, his eyes boring into Matt Ellison like lasers. Reese's voice took on a tone of pure menace, "I'll leave your shop, for now, Matt. But I'm in town to find out who murdered my parents and who murdered the Hunters. And I'm not leaving town until I know the truth."

Ellison's eyes opened wide; he certainly had never dealt with anything like John Reese before. Last time he had seen John he was John Davis, grieving son. Ellison had not been expecting John Reese, CIA Operative and all around badass.

John turned and left the building. "Now let's see what shakes out," he thought. From the look on Matt's face, he'd rattled him. Hopefully Matt had been rattled enough to do something stupid.


	6. Chapter 6 - Stakeout

**Chapter 6 - Stakeout**

As John walked towards the hotel, a car pulled up next to him. He looked over to see Joss in their rental. "Need a ride, soldier?" she asked coyly. John grinned and climbed in.

"How did it go with the Sheriff?" John asked as he took her hand and lifted it to his lips.

Joss smiled as she withdrew her hand so she could drive. "Berke is a good man and a good cop. He was _very_ informative."

"Berke was a good friend to the Wolf community. What did he tell you?"

"He told me to start with our pal Everett's dad, Matt Ellison. He says someone in the pack knows something but he could never get them to talk, he was rather sure though that Matt was involved in the mix somewhere."

John smirked at his mate, "Matt and I just had a little chat; he wasn't too happy to see me."

Joss snorted, "Yeah, I noticed that happens a lot with you. Must be your winning personality."

John put on his puppy dog face. "Now I'm hurt." Then he got serious, "First Janelle, then Sheriff Berke, and my old friend Mags, all wanting us to take a closer look at Matt. I think it's time I called Finch."

John tapped his earpiece. "'Hello Finch, how is New York?"

Finch's familiar voice answered cheerfully. "Everything is fine Mr. Reese. Detective Fusco successfully intervened in a plot to assassinate the Yankee's star second baseman, for which he received an autographed jersey for his son and box seats to Saturday's game. Miss Shaw is currently protecting a dock supervisor from a man he fired last week, but she reports that she should have the case wrapped up in a few hours."

There was some noise in the background, but John could not make out what it was.

"Oh, Taylor says to tell his mother that he aced his Trig mid-term," Finch added with a smile in his voice.

John smiled fondly, "I'll tell her. I need you to hack into a truck's GPS system for me and tell me if the owner was anywhere near the Hunters' place when they were killed."

"I take it you have a strong suspect then?"

"All roads seem to lead back to my old friend's father, Matt Ellison."

John heard Finch tapping on his keyboard. "What's the make and the license plate."

"GMC, and the plate is ELL1S0N."

"GMC, so I'll have to hack the OnStar database. That won't take long." Finch sounded rather smug. "I'll call you back when I have something."

"Thanks, Finch." John ended the call.

Joss looked over her mate, "Does it ever bother you that Finch can hack all these databases so quickly? It's like a casual stroll in park for him to find out anything about anybody."

John shrugged, "No. I'm just glad he is on our side. Besides, I'm dead, remember? I'm not in those databases. "

Joss sighed, "Those of us who are not dead find it rather creepy sometimes. So now what?"

John grinned, "We wait and see what Finch finds. In the meantime, feel like a stakeout?"

Joss answered with her own grin. "Thought you would never ask," she purred.

* * *

Later that night, John and Joss were stretched out on their stomachs under a large bush at the edge of Matt Ellison's property. John was using the small scope he normally used for stakeouts while Joss focused her Wolf senses on Ellison.

Matt Ellison was completely unaware that he was being watched. He come home from the shop, showered, changed and microwaved a frozen dinner. He was now relaxing in a recliner in front the of the TV in his t-shirt, jeans and slippers, watching a baseball game. John suspected that this was his normal routine.

"He's just sitting there watching TV," John said softly. He glanced over at his mate. Joss was lying on her stomach with her arms folded in front of her, resting her head on them with her eyes closed so she could focus her all her abilities on Ellison. "Are you picking up anything?" he asked.

"He's lonely John. He's just really lonely and sad," Joss said sadly.

John was alarmed at her melancholy tone of voice and he leaned over to kiss her cheek, "Break contact if it bothers you. You don't need to do this; I have eyes on him."

"No, it's OK," she said as she opened one eye to look at up him and gave him a hint of a smile. "I'll be fine."

John gently stroked Joss's back while he watched Ellison. He had never really stopped to consider how Joss's abilities affected her before now. He'd known almost from the moment he had turned her that his mate was far more sensitive than the average Wolf. Most Wolves could "feel" another Wolf from a few feet away and they could feel their own mates for a block or two, but this ability varied widely between individuals. Some Wolves had a longer range than others, and could feel their mates from several blocks away. Some Wolves weren't very sensitive at all and had to be right next to another Wolf before they felt them.

Joss was extraordinary. She knew where every single Wolf was within a couple of blocks and knew what they were feeling. Because of Joss's abilities, she and John shared the strongest mating bond any Wolf familiar with them had ever known. Joss could feel him all the way across the city and he could feel her from almost as far.

John never was quite sure why Joss was so sensitive. She had not been born a Wolf; John had been forced to turn her to save her life from a gunshot wound. According to Wolf lore, in order to turn another person, the Wolf doing the turning was supposed to clear their mind and enter a calm, relaxed state before attempting to perform the turn, or the effect on the person being turned could be unpredictable. With Joss dying in his arms, John had not had time clear his mind; he had been frantic to save her and his mind had been in complete turmoil. John theorized that his chaotic state of mind during her turning gave her native intuition, which was already quite strong, a massive boost, resulting in her extraordinary senses. However it had happened, his beloved mate was one of most powerful Wolves John had ever encountered.

They had used Joss's abilities for cases many times, but John hadn't considered the possibility that her abilities could adversely affect her. It never occurred to him before now that the moods of the Wolves around her could negatively impact her own mood and feelings. Right now she seemed to be absorbing Ellison's loneliness and melancholia and it worried him.

"I never asked you what it was like to be able to do what you do. To feel what people around you were feeling," he said tenderly as he continued to stroke her back while he kept eyes on Ellison.

"Most of the time, it's not bad at all since I don't usually focus on someone like this. You know how you walk down the street and her hear bits of conversations? Normally that's what I get except its bits of feelings."

John glanced down at her. "Doesn't that get tiring?"

"Not often. Even in a city like New York, only about ten percent of the population is Wolf, and since I can only feel Wolves, it's not too bad. Even if we have an intense case involving Wolves, all I usually need is a hot bath and good night's sleep and I'm over it. It's actually getting better as I learn to control this ability."

John realized that Joss's world was never completely quiet; as long as there was another Wolf around there was going to be, for lack of a better term, noise. Mentally, he gave himself a good swift kick for not realizing this earlier. He also resolved to buy her a nice quiet cabin in the woods away from everyone, including himself, that she could escape to, if that's what she needed.

"Stop it, John," Joss murmured.

John blinked in surprise, "Stop what?"

Joss turned her head and glared up at him. "Stop beating yourself up. I'm fine, really. You'd know if I wasn't," she said in what Taylor would recognize as her Mom Voice.

John sighed. He couldn't hide anything from her. "I'll try. What about now? Feeling Ellison's loneliness, is it affecting you?"

"Naw, it's just sad, thinking about how he has driven so many people away. He's Wolf, he's pack, and he shouldn't be lonely, but because he has pushed everyone away, including his eldest son, it's just him and the TV. I know he has no one but himself to blame, but still…" and her voice trailed off.

She looked up at John, "How could anyone push their own child away?" John knew she was thinking of Taylor. He shrugged.

John's voice was soft. "I don't know, honey. I guess life just handed Matt more than he could handle and it's twisted him. Are you sure you're OK?"

"I'm fine. I'm not going to throw myself off the nearest cliff, if that's what you're worried about," she smiled and arched an eyebrow at him.

"That's exactly what I'm worried about," John growled. "Looks like we are done here for the night anyway, Ellison is getting ready for bed."

Joss shook her head, "Early to bed type of guy. Just a lonely, sad old man."

John leaned down and kissed the top of her head. "Let's go back to the hotel and I'll cheer you up."

Joss smiled up at him, and John could see her large, lovely eyes shining despite the low light. She rolled over on her back and reached up to touch his face. "Mmmmm, sounds like a good way to spend an evening," she purred seductively.

John lowered his head and kissed her tenderly while running his hand down her side. "Let's go," he said.

As they were driving back to the hotel, Finch called. "According to the OnStar database, the truck in question was nowhere near the Hunters home when they were murdered."

John frowned, "We can't rule Matt out yet. He could have gotten a ride or just walked out there. It's not a long run for a Wolf."

"Very true," Finch said. "However I did notice something very interesting in the GPS data. That truck was driven regularly to an area that I can only describe as the middle of nowhere. According to the best map data I can find, it has regularly been driven out on old logging roads in the back country, where there are no homes or businesses. and has been parked there for hours at a time late at night."

John frowned. "That sounds suspicious alright. Give us the directions, we'll check out tomorrow when it's light."

"Texting you the coordinates now, Mr. Reese."

* * *

Unbeknownst to them, as John and Joss talked with Finch, a shadowy figure opened the driver's door to Matt's truck. The person took a key out of their pocket and started the vehicle, driving it off down the road as its owner slept.


	7. Chapter 7 - The Middle of Nowhere

**Chapter 7 - The Middle of Nowhere**

The next morning, after Joss forced John to eat some breakfast, they followed the directions Finch gave them to the out of the way area were Matt Ellison's truck was consistently parked at night for several hours at a time.

They discovered that Finch was right, it _was_ the middle of nowhere. They found themselves on an old logging road that had not been used in a very long time, except for the occasional hunter. The road was in such poor condition that their rental car was barely able to negotiate the deep ruts and rocks that covered the road. It was a densely wooded area, perfect for Wolves; if they had been looking for a good place to run in Wolf form this would be it. John was beginning to wonder if he might be wrong about Matt Ellison, if maybe he just came out here to run when a Fish and Game Warden pulled up.

"Can I help you? Are you lost?' The warden asked cheerfully. The man was about five ten with a bald head and the air of someone who knew how to handle himself. While the warden's demeanor was friendly, John did note the strap that held his gun in his holster was unsnapped and the warden's hand casually hovered near the weapon.

To diffuse any apprehensions the warden might be having, John gave him an amiable smile and pulled out the Federal Marshall badge he had taken off Brad Jennings a couple of years ago.

"I'm Marshall Jennings, and this is Detective Carter of the New York City PD." John paused while Joss showed the warden her badge. "We're right where we want to be; we just don't quite know where here is," he said affably.

The warden checked both their IDs and then visibly relaxed, "How can I help you then? Do we have a fugitive running around out here?"

John shrugged, "You might. The GPS in a car the man drove indicated he has been out here. Have you seen any suspicious activity around here lately?"

"Plenty," the warden replied. "We're only a couple of miles from the Canadian border, so this area is a hot bed of smuggling activity. Think that's something your fugitive might be involved in?"

John looked thoughtful, "I wouldn't put it past him. He's Wolf, have you heard of any Wolf smugglers operating in the area?"

"Oh yeah. The Border Patrol has been tangling with a gang of Wolves for over twenty years. They wear those packs like you use when you take your dog hiking and the dog carries it's own supplies. Some of 'em seem to be able to go Wolf even on nights when the moon isn't full. Border Patrol has seen them on occasion, but has never been able to catch any of them. The Canadians haven't had much luck either. As you can see, this territory is perfect for Wolves."

Joss nodded and looked around, "A Wolf smuggling ring would be impossible to catch in this terrain."

The warden pulled out a piece of paper and a pen and wrote down a number, "This is the phone number for an old drinking buddy of mine, Border Patrol Agent by the name of Barry Kirkland. He can give you more information on the smuggling operations. Tell him Warden Jefferies sent you."

John took the number. "Thanks, you've been a big help, warden."

The warden shook their hands, "Good luck with your investigation. Hope you catch the guy."

"Thanks."

They drove back into town and called the number Warden Jefferies gave them. A short while later, they were escorted into the local office of the Border Patrol to meet with Agent Kirkland.

Kirkland was nearly as tall as John, with a military inspired haircut and built like a bull. "So, you're interested in Wolf smugglers, eh?" He asked.

John nodded. "We are working a case and one of our top suspects is a Wolf who has been out in an area the Warden Jefferies tells us is a very active area for smugglers. What can you tell us about them?"

Agent Kirkland looked sour, "I'm embarrassed to say not much despite the fact that they have been active for many years. We can't get close to them. We have cameras along the border in several places so we have a few pictures. But that's it. They know this area like the back of their paws. Even when we brought in some Wolf agent,s they couldn't get close. The Wolves are fast, smart, and know the terrain too well."

"Did any of your Wolf agents have tracking skills?" John asked, tossing a look in Joss's direction,

The Agent nodded, "Couple of 'em had scent tracking skills, but they weren't fast enough. Following a scent just isn't a very fast way to travel. One of the Wolf agents did get lucky, if you can call it that. He got close to them, but he was alone and got jumped by the group. Wound up in the ICU for a week. We were lucky to find him before he bled out. They really tore him up bad."

"So they're violent?" Joss asked. "That's unusual for smugglers. They usually just try to run."

Kirkland grunted, "Like I said we haven't gotten close very often, but when we have, they have been _very_ violent. It is unusual, the agent they tore up said it was like they were enjoying it."

Joss looked thoughtful. "What do they smuggle?"

Kirkland shrugged. "According to our informants, anything they get paid for that is small enough to fit in their packs. Drugs, currency, stolen goods, weapons. They may have even guided fugitives into the US. They are free-lancers, willing to work for anyone who will pay their price. And they charge a lot. Word on the street is that they are the most reliable couriers around. They have never failed to deliver a package. They're smart, too. If we get too close they suspend operations for a while. After they put that one agent in the hospital, there was no activity for a couple of months. Usually criminals get greedy and that's when we nail 'em. Not these guys."

Realizing that they had gotten all the information they could out of the Agent, John and Joss thanked him for his help, shook hands, and left.

As they were leaving the building, Finch rang them.

"I found something quite interesting. I took a look at Mr. Ellison's finances. His shop is not making enough money to stay open and it hasn't for quite some time. Years in fact. But I found a Caymen Islands account with a quarter of a million dollars in it."

John and Joss looked at each other. The pieces were beginning to fall into place.

"So Ellison may be a smuggler," Joss said. "Both Kirkland and Jefferies said that the smugglers have been active on nights when the moon wasn't full, so who in the pack can change on a non-full moon night?"

"My parents could," John said softly as he stared down at the steering wheel of the car.

Joss reached over and placed her hand over John's on the steering wheel, "They must have found out about the smuggling ring and were killed before they could talk to Berke. The sheriff mentioned that your father had been in the station to see him that day, but Berke was in court, so they never got a chance to talk. And then the killer must have killed various pack members as they found out about the smuggling to keep it quiet."

"Or wanted out of the ring," Finch said. "I checked on some dates. The LeBlanc family was killed two days after the Border Patrol Agent was injured. Mr. LeBlanc may have been part of the gang, but wanted out after they got violent, so they killed him and his family."

"Thanks, Finch."

Joss's brow furrowed as John rang off the call, "We'll have to ask Everett who in the pack can change on nights when the moon isn't full."

John nodded and dialed Everett. "Everett, we may have a lead, but I have a question, who in the pack can change on nights when the moon isn't completely full?"

"Mark and Marie can change at night if the moon is half full or more. Dad can change for a few nights on either side of a full moon, but not many. That's it."

"How many of the dead Wolves could change on non-full moon nights?"

There was a long pause on the other end of the line. "You may be on to something there, Stan LeBlanc, Jackson Holt and Karen Rodriquez all could. What are you guys onto?"

"We're not quite sure yet, Thanks, Ev. We'll let you know when we have some evidence you can use."

Joss checked an app on her phone, "John, tonight is a three quarters moon."

"I know. Feel like a run?" He looked at his mate with a big smirk on his face.

Joss grinned wolfishly, "I thought you would never ask!"

* * *

That night Reese and Carter drove out to the area where Ellison's truck had parked, leaving their car a little further out on a different road so the smuggling ring would not see it. They took their clothes off and hid the duffle bag with their clothes, ID, phones, and car keys under a thick bush a couple hundred yards away from the vehicle.

John turned to his mate, "You take the lead, using your abilities. I don't want us to get close enough for them to detect us. I don't want a fight tonight."

Joss nodded, "Got it. I'll try and keep us fifty to hundred yards away and downwind."

"That should do it."

"Do they know you can change anytime? Do you think they will be expecting us?"

"Yes, there's a good chance they know about my ability; it was well known in the pack that both my parents could change at will. But they won't know about you and your Wolf sense. Even if they are looking for us, you can keep us far enough away that they won't know we are there."

"Ok, let's do this." Joss vanished and the black Wolf was in her place.

John followed suit and morphed into the large salt and pepper Wolf.

They ran through the forest to the spot where the Ellison truck was parked and settled down in a place where they were well hidden in the shadows of the trees. They lay quietly with their sides touching, waiting for nightfall to see if Ellison would show up.

Sometime later, well after it had gotten dark, they watched silently as the truck was parked on the logging road and two people got out, a man and a woman. Joss couldn't see who they were, it was too dark and they had to remain far enough away so the smugglers could not sense them. The smugglers morphed into Wolf form and slipped on carrying packs. Using their teeth they tightened the straps on each other's packs and took off through the thick vegetation.

Joss was going to assume that they were somewhat more sensitive than average Wolves, just to be safe. She waited until she judged they were far enough away that the smugglers wouldn't detect them. Then she leaped to her feet and began silently following them, with John right behind her.

Tonight, John would be blind and completely reliant on his mate to keep them on course and avoid a confrontation with the Wolf smugglers. His abilities to sense other Wolves were not nearly as good as hers, but his trust in his mate was so strong he followed her lead without hesitation.

As they trotted through the thick Northwestern forest, John kept looking over at his mate. She was completely focused on her task, tracking the smugglers without getting too close, with all the intensity that she showed in her police work. Her eyes were focused ahead of them and John could feel her intense concentration as she tracked their prey.

They ran through the forest and, with a start, John realized just how much he had missed the Great Northwest. The brush they were running through was perfect Wolf terrain and there was plenty of it. Sadly, he remembered many happy nights with his parents running through this same forrest. He realized that he missed them; he never knew how much until this minute. It caught him off guard.

John suddenly realized that Joss was slowing down to look at him, and he knew that she must have picked up on his pensive mood. He jerked his head in the direction of the Wolves they were following and growled softly in his throat to let her know that she needed to keep her attention on them and not on him.

The look she shot him in response plainly said _we will talk about this later_. John decided that was OK with him; he had never told her much about his parents and it was time he did. Their murder had had a profound influence on the direction his life had taken and it was time he shared it with his mate. It had been buried too long.

After they had traveled for several miles, John judged they were across the Canadian border. Joss suddenly stopped and stood completely still with her ears full forward and nose slightly up, testing the wind. John realized that their quarry must have stopped up ahead and he assumed the same posture, trying to detect any Wolf scent in the air, listening intently for any sign that would indicate they had been detected. Slowly and carefully, so as not to make a sound, Joss cautiously picked her way forward, with John following just as cautiously behind.

After about twenty-five yards, they came to the edge of a small road. A short way down, they saw the Wolves standing next to a car while men filled their packs with small bundles.

John and Joss hid in the shadows and watched as the Wolves' packs were filled. "That's all of it. Larkin will meet you tomorrow at the usual place and time to collect the goods," one of the men told the Wolves as he zipped up the last pocket. The Wolves nodded and turned to leave.

John held his breath as the smugglers passed by within several yards of his and Joss's hiding place, but the other Wolves did not detect them. Apparently none of these Wolves had abilities anywhere near as powerful as his mate's. For that, John was grateful; he didn't want a fight tonight.

The men left as soon as the Wolves vanished into the woodlands and John and Joss were left alone by the road. Joss waited for a few minutes, focusing her concentration again on the smugglers. Once she judged that they were far enough away, she began following them with John hot on her heels once again.

The smugglers took a different route on the way back; one that was less direct. They carefully avoided any roads or homes. That part was easy; this area was sparsely populated. Joss expertly tracked them and they arrived back at Ellison's truck in time the see the Wolves remove their packs and morph back into human. Again, they didn't want to get too close, so they remained far enough away that they couldn't visually ID the smugglers once they were in human form again.

They watched as the smugglers dressed and climbed back in the truck. They hid in the shadows once again as the truck passed by on its way back out onto the main road. Then they turned and galloped to where they had left their car.

As soon as John was human again, he turned to his mate. "Looks like Ellison has a nice little lucrative business smuggling goods across the border and he's been killing the other Wolves of the pack as they either find out or try to separate from his operation."

"That theory fits all the facts we have so far," Joss agreed as she pulled her clothes on. "But we don't have anything Everett can use for an arrest, much less a conviction."

John growled, "If we don't get some evidence, we can always take matters in our own hands."

Joss shot him a dirty look as she helped him button up his shirt, like she always did after a Wolf run. "It's premature to talk like that. We know so much more than we did before. We are making good progress. We will solve this case, John." For emphasis she kissed the hollow at the base of his throat when she finished the last button.

John closed his eyes as she planted her kiss, words could not convey just how much he loved it when she did that. In reply, he kissed her forehead and embraced her tightly. "I know. I'm glad you came."

"I belong with you John, wherever you go."

John led her back to the car and they drove to the hotel mostly in silence. They changed clothes and crawled into bed when they got to their room. When Joss was comfortably settled with her head on John's chest, she asked the question that had been puzzling her all night.

"Back in the woods, I felt you go really sad for few minutes. Care to share what was going through your head?"

John gently ran his long, elegant fingers up and down her spine while he answered, "Running through the woods tonight reminded me of running with my parents. It brought back a lot of memories."

Joss lifted her head so she could make eye contact with her mate. "I'm sorry John," she said softly. "That must have been painful for you."

John kept stroking her back while he stared up at the ceiling. "It actually was cathartic. I have never really dealt with my parents' murder or the betrayal of my pack afterwards. I ran away and tried to forget the whole thing and that decision had a less than positive impact on my life."

Joss placed her head back down and snuggled up to his side "Tell me about your parents," she urged softly.

"They were good people, good Wolves. They were both Born Alphas, both from the old European bloodlines. They taught me my whole life that as a born Alpha it was my responsibility to protect and care for others."

Joss smiled a little at that, "You certainly learned your lesson well."

"They lived it every day; I had a good example to follow."

"What were they like?"

"They were good parents; I felt very loved growing up." John paused for moment. "They would have loved you," he said tightly.

Joss turned her head and pressed a kiss into his chest.

John continued, "My mom is where I got my love for sweets. She used to fix a batch of cookie dough and she and I would eat most of it raw, instead of baking it. She was a terrific cook and taught me how to get around in a kitchen. She had a wicked sense of humor.

"My dad was quiet. He was a doer, not a talker. I don't think I ever once heard him complain. He was a strong Alpha; Matt Ellison was terrified of him. They were quite happy when I joined the Army; they thought it would make me a better Wolf, a better Alpha, and they were right."

"Not everyone agreed with them, though, did they?"

John shifted uncomfortably under her, "No. A lot of the pack thought I should stay here. They never forgave me for leaving them."

"So when your parents died, they were ready to believe the worst about you."

John shrugged, "Losing such a strong Alpha pair must have scared them badly. I guess it made it easier if they thought the person who did it was run out of town."

"You are being a lot more forgiving than I would be. What they did to you…you rejected being a Wolf, everything you were."

"That was my own decision, not theirs."

Joss sat up and glared down at her mate. "Don't tell me they had nothing to do with it! After what they did to you, what else could you have done?"

John sat up and took Joss' face in his hands. "Listen to me; I take responsibility for my decisions, especially the bad ones."

"John…" she started to protest, he interrupted her by placing his fingers on her lips.

"I know. I started dating Jessica because she wasn't Wolf, but she still was a connection to this town. Part of the reason I loved her was that she wasn't Wolf. Then I realized she couldn't handle what I really was. It wasn't fair to use her like I was, even if I did love her. So I cut her loose."

"So you were ready and willing when the CIA came calling…"

John bowed his head, "Again, my decision, my responsibility. I had nothing left. It seemed like a good way to continue to be part of something important, and to continue protecting my country because that was all I had left."

"John, don't you see, all those awful things that happened to you, it all started when a bunch of small-minded assholes rejected a grieving son in his hour of need. They ripped your support network out from under you when you needed it the most. What did you think was going to happen? They put you on that path." Joss felt the tears starting to sting her eyes.

"And I could have gotten off that path at any time, but I didn't," John said firmly.

Joss turned so her back was to him and swiped at her eyes. How could he be so forgiving? But then it was John, and she should have expected nothing less from that big generous heart of his. But she could not get that picture of a young John being accused of familicide by Matt Ellison in front of the entire pack at that awful Pack Night and having the pack pointing accusing fingers at the man who should be their Alpha. She could vividly see the look of pain and loss on John's face as he realized he had not just lost his beloved parents, but his entire pack as well.

John gently encircled her with those long muscular arms of his and pulled her to him so her back was pressed against his chest. He lovingly kissed her shoulder and nuzzled her ear. "Hey, hey, don't cry, it all worked out; I have you, Taylor, Finch, the numbers and our pack now. I could not be happier. It was worth it, _all_ of it, as long I have _you_."

"Oh John," Joss turned in his arms and buried her face in his neck, holding him tightly. They sat like that for several minutes, just holding each other. Then they settled down to sleep, holding each other all night long.


	8. Chapter 8 - Suspects

**Chapter 8 - Suspects**

Everett found them at breakfast the next morning in the dingy diner. John was dutifully finishing a plate of eggs, bacon, and toast under his mate's watchful eye. Everett sat down next to Joss in the booth and looked at John's hearty breakfast.

"Fueling up for the day ahead?" he asked with a hint of a smile.

John sighed a long suffering sigh, "My mate likes to keep me well-fed."

Joss folded her arms, set her lips in a hard line, and arched an eyebrow at Everett, "He doesn't like to eat during a case. But you can't live off coffee and doughnuts, so I have to be firm."

Everett, sensing that this was a long running argument between them, wisely decided to steer the conversation to the case. "The fingerprint results came back from Tacoma. You were right. There were some matches between the ones from your parents' house and the Hunters. At least some of the same people where at both crime scenes. Now the question is who are they? We ran the prints through IAFIS. No matches, so these guys have never been arrested for another crime."

"Do you have any suspects in the Hunter's murder?" John asked as he finally finished his breakfast and pushed his plate away.

Everett looked at the table and Joss sensed that he was very upset by that question. Both she and John waited while Everett struggled with what he was about to say.

"The main suspect was my father. He argued with Dave at Pack Night right before they were killed."

John leaned forward, "You said he was a suspect? He's not anymore?"

Everett shook his head, "He has a partial alibi. Mags says he was at the Den for at least part of the time-frame we think the Hunters were being murdered. You know how Mags feels about my dad; she wouldn't give him an alibi if she didn't have to."

Joss sipped her coffee thoughtfully, "But his whereabouts are accounted for only part of the time. Have you taken your dad's fingerprints?"

Again Everett shook his head, "Nope. I asked him if I could take them, just to rule him out, and he told me how far and how fast to shove it. Quite graphically." Everett's lips were pressed together and the lines around his eyes were tense; it was obvious that the estrangement with his family was taking a toll on him. Joss felt bad for him. It had become obvious to her that Everett was a good man and a good cop. He deserved better from his father.

John smirked at his friend, "Don't worry, we'll take care of gathering fingerprints."

Everett's brow furrowed and he looked rather confused, "Just how are you going to do that?"

Joss rolled her eyes, "It's best if you don't ask too many questions. Trust me on this."

* * *

John and Joss spent the morning watching Matt Ellison's shop. It was slow. Matt had a Dodge truck in for an oil change and tune up, but that was about all the work he seemed to have this day. He was done by lunch and he locked up the shop and left.

John turned to Joss, "Follow him; I'll catch up later."

Joss paused with her hand on the door handle, "Do I want to know what you're going to do when my back is turned?"

John gave her his best look of wide-eyed innocence, "I don't know, do you?"

Joss gave him her best Mom Look. "No," she said in a long suffering voice and got out the car, following Matt down the street.

John watched her in his rearview mirror until she turned the corner, his eyes glued to her backside. He thought pleasurable thoughts about taking that shapely ass into his hands and grinding himself into her until she was out of sight. Then he threw some mental cold water on himself; he had a job to do.

He got out of the car and casually strolled to the end of the block. Looking around to be sure no one was watching, he ducked down the alley that ran behind the shop and rapidly picked the lock on the back door.

Matt hadn't even bothered to shut off his office computer before he left. John sat down and swiftly checked the books on the business, confirming what Finch had found in the tax records earlier. Matt should have been out of business a long time ago. The shop was bleeding money to the tune of a couple of thousand a month, and had been for some time. But there was no indication as to where the money that was keeping the business going was coming from.

John took a flash drive out of his pocket and plugged it into the computer. He launched the program it contained that would sniff through all the files on the computer and send them to Finch for analysis.

While the program was running, John searched the small shop thoroughly. He found a poorly maintained handgun in the file cabinet; the gun had not been fired or cleaned for some time. John frowned and stuck it in his pocket. He doubted Matt would miss it, and people who kept guns for "protection" who obviously had no idea how to handle and maintain a deadly weapon, annoyed him to no end. With Matt's volatile temper, the last thing the town needed was an armed and dangerous Matt Ellison.

John didn't find anything else of interest during his search. The shop was orderly and the search went quickly; John didn't find anything suspicious. There were no drugs or any other kind of contraband at all. There was nothing that could have been smuggled over the border by a Wolf carrying a pack.

The computer beeped to let him know that Finch's program was done with its work. John pulled the flash drive and returned it to his pants pocket. Taking a handkerchief out of his jacket pocket he grabbed the cardboard box that he had seen Matt carrying the previous day, taking care to not get any of his fingerprints on it. The last thing they needed was for Everett to find redacted prints on the box. John couldn't help but smile a tiny bit at the look that would be on Everett's face if_ those_ results came back.

John locked the back door of the shop and casually strolled back to the car. He tossed the box in the back seat and was just settling into the driver seat to go join his mate when he got a call.

"John," his earpiece cracked with Joss's voice. "Ellison finished his lunch at the Den and is on his way back to the shop. Whatever you're doing, you'd better stop."

"I'm hurt, what makes you think I'm doing anything? I'm just sitting here in the car," John said in a mock-wounded tone of voice.

"You think I'm stupid, don't you?" growled his mate.

John smiled, "Let's just say I have a box with Matt's fingerprints all over it and the contents of his computer are winging their way over the internet to Finch."

"I did _not_ hear that. But if you are done kicking sand in the face of the laws of the state of Washington, you had better get out of there before Matt sees you. Your old friend Mags would like us to return to the Den and have lunch with her."

John laughed, "I'm going to stop at the Sheriff's office and give the box to Everett. Then I'll meet you at the Den."

* * *

Everett called them a few hours later as they were finishing up lunch with Mags, "The prints are not a match. Not to either murder scene."

"Thanks Ev," John hung up disappointed.

"Bad news?" Mags asked.

John looked over at Joss, "Our suspect has just been cleared."

Joss could feel John's dejection. He still didn't know who killed his parents and he had no suspects.

Joss laid a hand on his arm, "We'll figure this out John."

"I know," he said softly placing his large hand over her much smaller one. "I just don't know where we go from here. Matt was our only real suspect."

She tugged on his hand, "Let's take a walk, clear our heads."

John smiled up at her stood up. They said good bye to Mags and John let Joss pull him out of the Den. They strolled down the street hand in hand, lost in thought, trying to decide on their next move.

Joss broke the silence first. "I think Sheriff Berke is right; someone in the pack knows something. Has Everett checked on alibis for all of them for the time the Hunters were killed?"

"I don't think so, we can talk to him about it when we see him later," John said. "I can ask Finch to hack the GPS on all their cars, see who was out by the Hunters' at the right time, but not all the Pack members have cars with GPS."

"We'll just go old school, then John," Joss said confidently. "We'll get them, you know that right?."

John smiled tenderly down at his mate. He was so glad he had her by his side right now.

He glanced up just in time to see Matt Ellison's truck drive by, but it wasn't Matt driving it; it was a younger version of Matt. He stopped dead in his tracks as he stared at the large vehicle. "Joss," he said, "We have been so busy looking at Matt, we never thought about anyone else who might have access to the truck."

Joss looked up at her mate as he stared at the taillights of the truck as it made its way down the street. "Who was that driving Matt's truck?"

"That was Mark."

"Everett's little brother?" Joss stared at him with wide eye while she absorbed the implications of what John had just said.

John tapped his earpiece, "Finch I need you to find out everything you can about Mark and Marie Ellison, Matt Ellison's younger children."

"Of course Mr. Reese, I take it that Matt Ellison is no longer a suspect?"

John's face was hard. "I wouldn't say that just yet, but Mark and Marie just moved to the head of the line."

John pulled Joss back to the Den. "Couldn't stay away, eh?" Mags looked up from wiping down the bar and smiled at her friends.

John and Joss sat down on stools at the bar where Mags was working. "Mags, what can you tell us about Mark and Marie?"

Mags's eyebrows shot up and she looked surprised, but then got a wolfish grin, "Well, they are both as mean as their daddy and would do anything for him. Everett is the odd man out in that family."

"What do they do for a living?" Joss asked.

"They own a couple of businesses around town. They started with a small gift shop, and that did well enough that they were able to buy a Laundromat, then a gas station, then a small apartment building. I hear they are in negotiations to buy a bar on the other side of town. They tried buying this place a few times, but I ain't selling. Seems like everything they touch turns to gold…" Mags stopped what she was saying and looked at John and Joss wide-eyed, as if the pieces had just fallen into place for her.

John leaned forward over the bar, speaking urgently, "Mags, keep this conversation under your hat. I don't want them finding out that we suspect them. Not yet."

Mags licked her lips and swallowed hard, "Got it, John. Oh my god, I never thought about it before. The answer was right under my nose the whole damn time."

"Don't jump the gun here," Joss cautioned urgently. "We don't know anything for sure yet."

Mags nodded her understanding, "I get it; my lips are sealed." She looked at John with tears starting to form in her eyes, "Does Everett know? This will kill him."

John looked grim, "No, and that's why I want some hard evidence before I tell him. I don't want to hurt him if I don't have to."

"Well I'm not going to hurt him," Mags said fiercely. "That poor man has had enough shit in his life."

John winked at her, "Thanks, Mags."

John and Joss left the bar. "What's the plan John?" Joss asked.

"We need to get fingerprints for Everett to compare to the crime scenes."

"Do I want to know how you're going to collect those fingerprints?"

John gave her a boyish grin. "Probably not."

Joss sighed.

* * *

Author's Note: 3 more chapters to go! Thanks to everyone who left a review. You guys are the best. :)


	9. Chapter 9 - The Twins

**Chapter 9 - The Twins**

Later that night Joss was stationed in their rental car down the street from Matt's house, while John was lurking across the street from Mark's house, watching Mark through the window.

John observed Mark leave his house and tapped his earpiece, "Joss, Mark is leaving. Keep your eyes peeled."

"OK," she replied. "Matt went to bed about half an hour ago."

Puyallup isn't a large town and it only took Mark a few minutes to reach his destination . "I see him," Joss reported. "He's taking the truck just like we thought he would."

"It makes sense," John said. "On those old logging roads the 4 wheel drive and the high ground clearance is a big help."

Joss watched as Mark backed the truck out of the driveway and drove off. "I guess since he bought his dad the truck he feels like he can use it when he wants. Matt may not even know about these little midnight trips."

John looked around as he crossed the street to Mark's house. "Follow him, but be careful."

"I'm not exactly new to this, John." Joss grumbled as she threw the car into gear.

John smiled at his mate's words as he swiftly picked the lock and entered the house. He punched the number he had surreptitiously observed Mark enter earlier into the keypad for the alarm and was rewarded with the green LED indicating the alarm was no longer armed.

He looked around the house. It wasn't very tidy, which made searching it a bit easier; he didn't have to be so careful. All the furnishings and appliances were high end, as was the hardwood floor. Mark was doing very well for himself. Much better than a small business owner in a small town should be doing in this economy, John thought.

After several minutes of searching, John finally found what he was looking for, a safe hidden behind a picture in a room that served as a home office. "Not very original Mark," John chuckled. He tapped his earpiece, "Finch, you there?"

"Always, Mr. Reese," came the prompt reply.

"I could use some safe cracking help here. I have a wall safe with a digital combination lock."

"Oh, hardly even a challenge. Please turn on the video camera on your phone and hold it up to the safe."

John did as he was told. "Hmmmm, a Magna 3000. This will only take a minute," Harold sniffed with disdain. "As much money as Mr. Ellison is making off his smuggling operation, he could have purchased a better safe." A series of rapid beeps and tones spewed forth from John's phone and in only a couple of minutes the safe swung open.

"Nice job, Finch. Are you sure you didn't work your way through school as a jewel thief?"

"I think I would have remembered that, Mr. Reese," Finch said primly. "I had a full academic scholarship, if you must know."

"I expected nothing less, Harold. You said Mark was making a lot of money in his smuggling operation?" John said as he began to rifle through the contents of the safe.

"Yes, I looked through the tax and business records of the twins' various operations. Their businesses are making three to four times the amount of money other comparable businesses in Puyallup are making."

"In other words, they are using the legitimate business to launder the smuggling money."

"Yes, and they keep buying new businesses because they keep making more and more with their illicit activities, so they need more legitimate businesses to launder all their ill-gotten gains."

John pulled out a fat wad of cash and thumbed through it. He estimated that there was around twenty thousand in small unmarked bills in the safe. "No wonder they have been willing to kill to keep their operation going. There's a lot of money here."

"Yes. I checked on the bank records for some of the dead Wolves as well. You were right about LeBlanc, Holt and of course Mark's deceased mate Karen Rodriquez, they all had considerable sums in offshore accounts at the time of their deaths," Finch responded.

John turned on the laptop that was sitting on the desk and removed the flash drive he had used in on Matt's computer form his pocket and plugged it into Mark's computer. A window popped up on the screen and a status began inching its way across the screen. "Mark's files are on their way to you now Finch."

"Thank you, Mr. Reese. I'll see what I can find. Please get me the make and license plate numbers of Mark's and Marie's cars, I would like to hack their GPSs and see if they were near the Hunters during the time of the murder."

"Will do. I'm done here; I'm going to check out Marie's condo next."

"Good luck Mr. Reese. Contact me when you get there."

John locked the safe back up, re-armed the security system, and left the house.

* * *

Joss followed the truck as Mark stopped to pick up his sister and they left town, heading in the direction of the now familiar logging road. Joss was careful to hang well back so she wouldn't be detected. Mark and Marie drove straight to the forest, completely unaware that they were being followed.

When they pulled off the main road onto the logging roads, Joss decided that she could no longer follow them in the sedan. She pulled off the road by the turnoff for the logging road and parked her car so it was hidden behind a stand of trees. Quickly she stripped off her clothes and went Wolf.

She raced down the logging road with her senses on high alert, the last thing she needed to do was blunder into a trap without John around to bail her out. As it was, he was probably going to be pretty upset with her for getting this close without him. _Oh well_, she thought_, he's spending the evening breaking and entering, so we're even._

Joss cautiously approached the area where the twins usually parked, and was rewarded with the sight of them climbing out of the truck, disrobing, and morphing. She remained outside the range of their Wolf senses while she watched them lope off into the woods. She followed them, taking care to remain far enough back that they could not detect her.

They took a slightly different route than before, but wound up in the same place, the same logging road on the other side of the Canadian border. The same man who had spoken to them once again confirmed that Larkin would meet them in the usual place the next day as the other man filled their packs with small bundles.

Joss followed the twins until they were close to their truck, then she ran to her car, morphed, and dressed quickly. She hid in her car, hidden in the shadows at the mouth of the logging road, as the truck drove past her. She waited until it turned back onto the main road and was out of sight, then she started the car and followed them.

She caught up to them fairly quickly. They were smart enough not to exceed the speed limit or commit any other traffic violations, and following them was quite easy for the experienced detective.

They pulled into an all-night diner. Joss followed them in and took a seat at the counter so her back was to them. She ordered a cup of coffee and piece of pie and took advantage of her close proximity to the twins to clone their phones. Then she called John.

"Hi, love. How are the twins?" he answered as he rummaged through Marie's home office safe.

"Fine, they are having a very late dinner behind me. They were busy tonight."

"So was I," John sounded rather triumphant.

"So, I take it you spent the time productively and probably unlawfully?" Joss teased.

Joss could hear John's smile in his voice, "Mark and Marie both have nice homes."

"And you know this because they invited you over for tea, I suppose."

"As far as you know, my love. I won't mention the safes with all the cash in them." Pause. "You have your head in your hands right now, don't you?"

Joss indeed did have her face in her hand. "Yes, yes I do. You didn't blow the safes did you?"

John sounded offended now, "No, they had electronic locks; Finch hacked them."

"I never thought I would be grateful to hear the words 'Finch hacked them.' So much for my moral compass. You've corrupted me John Reese." Joss was smiling to herself now.

"When I get you back to the hotel room, I plan on corrupting you further," John purred in his low sexy voice one that never failed to send a rush of heat between his mate's legs. "How are things on your end?"

"Great, they did another run for the border tonight and they are meeting their contact tomorrow."

There was a brief pause on the other end of the phone. "Wait, how do you know that? Joss, you didn't follow them as a Wolf by yourself, did you?"

Joss couldn't help grinning a bit in revenge. "Yes." Pause. "Now you have your head in your hands, don't you?"

"Yes," John snarled.

Joss ignored his obvious anger. "Welcome to my world, John," she chirped. "I think we should follow them tomorrow and get a look at their contact."

John sighed, "You're probably right. Did you get a chance to clone their phones?"

"Yeah, just now."

"Good. Leave the twins and meet me back at the hotel. I think we've done all we can for tonight."

"See you in a bit." Joss rang off, paid her bill and left without the twins ever noticing that she was there.

* * *

As Joss walked into the hotel room, she was grabbed and tossed unceremoniously on the bed before she could fight back. She landed on her back and then John was hovering over her with his hands on either side of her shoulders and his knees on either side of thighs. She looked into the ice cold blue eyes of a pissed-off Alpha Wolf.

"What were you thinking? Following them into the forest without any backup? Did you forget what they did to that Border Patrol agent?" John's upper lip curled into a snarl and anger was dripping off him.

"John, I was fine. I never came near them. Now get off me." Joss gave John's shoulders a push, but he didn't move.

John's eyes remained hard and cold. "No. Not until you promise to never do anything that stupid again."

Now Joss was furious. "STUPID?! Look who's talking! The man who spent the evening breaking and entering! Get off!" She snarled back.

A power struggle ensued which Joss's 5'4" frame lost rather badly to John's 6'2" body. He soon had her completely and helplessly pinned underneath him. He sat on her thighs and his hands had her wrists pinned above her head. She could not move at all and she finally realized that struggling was futile and just surrendered to him.

"Promise me you won't do that again, Joss. They would have killed you." And he reached down and gently kissed her. She looked up into his eyes and saw something besides the anger: fear.

"John, really, I was fine," she gasped as his talented mouth slowly traveled from her mouth back to her ear and nibbled on the lobe.

"Promise me," his hands released her wrists so he could unbutton her blouse.

"I know what I'm doing…oh god," she moaned as he lifted a breast from the cup of her bra and pinched her nipple. She reached up and unbuttoned his shirt and took it off him.

"You take too many chances," his mouth was on her neck biting and then soothing the sting with his tongue while his hands continued to work their magic on her breasts.

"Look who's talking...I didn't go near them.…I'm not new to this…oh yes, right there baby…" she hissed as his mouth slid down her chest to replace his fingers on one of her nipples.

"I can't lose you, Joss," John murmured to her as he switched his mouth over to her other nipple.

"Oh Johnnnn, that feels so good… I didn't take any foolish chance. I swear…don't stop," she begged.

"Promise me." John removed her pants.

"I'm a cop," She protested as she helped him off with his pants.

"I'd die if anything happened to you…ohhhh," this as Joss took his cock into her hands, gently stroking him.

John pushed her hands off him and rubbed the tip of his penis against her clitoris, smearing it with the pre-cum, "Promise me."

"Ohhhhhh…" Joss arched her back and ran her fingers down John's back to grab his ass. "Fuck me, baby."

John impaled her with one swift motion, but stopped. He gently nuzzled her, "Promise me," he whispered in her ear.

Joss took his face in her hands and tenderly kissed him. "I promise to always return to you, my mate."

That was what John was waiting to hear. He buried his face in her shoulder and began pounding into her. "Yessss…oh God… Don't stop," Joss cried out but John had no intention of stopping until his mate was completely satisfied.

And satisfy her he did. It wasn't long before she was screaming his name and he felt her tighten around him. "Yes, baby, come for me."

Joss happily obliged. Her eyes rolled back into her head and her muscular legs wrapped so tightly around John's back that he could barely move. "Ohhhhhh….Fucckkkkk," she gasped as her orgasm slammed into her body and she dug her nails into his shoulders.

A couple of thrusts later John stiffened and emptied himself into his mate. He collapsed next to her on the bed, breathing heavily. He pulled her to him so she was spooned with her back against his front and he curled protectively around her.

"Sleep, my dear. We have a busy day ahead tomorrow," he murmured to her as he gently nuzzled her ear and neck. But he needn't have bothered, she was already drifting off, sated and content. John happily held her tight as he followed her down into sleep.

* * *

Author's Note: Wouldn't you like to have your arguments with your SO end that way?;)


	10. Chapter 10 - Ambush

**Chapter 10 – Ambush**

The next morning found John and Joss parked in their car down the street from Mark's house, munching on doughnuts and sipping coffee while they waited for him to make a move. Mark appeared to be a late sleeper and it was a couple of hours before he strolled out the door and got into his late model luxury car. He leisurely drove to the local coffee shop and purchased a large latte and a muffin. Both John and Joss noted that he was wearing expensive designer jeans, shoes, and shirt.

"Our boy likes his money," Joss observed.

"He likes it enough to kill for it," John growled. It felt surreal to John to be watching the man he was sure had murdered his parents and numerous pack mates casually strolling around town like nothing had ever happened. It felt even more surreal to know that he was finally close to the truth after all these years.

Joss watched her mate with concern. She could feel his tension; he was coiled like a deadly cobra, ready to strike. It worried her when John got this intense; bodies usually started dropping and they were far from home, they were far from her jurisdiction where she could usually explain things away to the authorities. They might not be so lucky here. Everett might not cut them any slack when he discovered they were about to finger his siblings for all the murders.

Joss gently laid her hand on John's arm where it rested on the console between the front seats. "I'm fine," John said tightly without moving his eyes from Mark.

"Don't lie to me, John. You know better."

"I'll be fine," he repeated firmly in a tone of voice that plainly said the conversation was over. Joss decided not to press the point right then.

They watched Mark finish his muffin and duck into a convenience store to purchase a few items. He returned to his home, put his groceries away, and then sat at his computer for a while. After about an hour, he got up and walked out to his car. John and Joss followed him carefully at a safe distance, but it was obvious that Mark was not looking for a tail.

Mark picked up his sister who was carrying a large package. They drove to the outskirts of Tacoma and pulled into a grocery store parking lot. John parked a distance away where he had a clear view of the twins, but far enough away that the twins would not notice them.

Joss put her phone on speaker so they could listen over the cloned phone connection. John kept an eye on them with the telephoto lens of his camera while Joss closed her eyes and leaned back in her seat, focusing her full abilities on the twins.

They only had a few minutes to wait until the twins were approached by a tall, thin, middle aged man.

"Larkin," Mark said in greeting.

"Ellison," Larkin nodded. "I assume you brought the stuff?"

Marie handed over the package and Larkin handed over a smaller package, probably cash to cover the Wolves' courier fee. "The boss wants you again tonight, as many Wolves as you can bring. We got a big shipment."

Mark shook his head, "No can do. We have some out-of-towners snooping around. Marie and I are going to have to take care of them tonight, then we'll have to lay low for a few months. We should've taken a break after we took out the Alphas."

Larkin grunted, "Boss will be unhappy about that; our other couriers aren't as efficient as you two."

Mark shrugged, "Can't be helped. We don't like giving up that money either, but things will be super hot after we take out those snoops. We'll be back in business as soon as we can."

"Well, good luck. Call me when you are ready to get back to work," Larkin walked off.

As John and Joss were following the twins back to Puyallup, Finch called. "I hacked the GPS in both Mark and Marie's cars. Marie's car was parked only about a half mile away from the Hunters' farm for a couple of hours the night the Hunters were killed."

John's lips went thin and Joss knew that was a bad sign. Whenever John's lips vanished like that, bad guys tended to wind up in the hospital if they were lucky, in the morgue if they weren't. She could feel his tension and anger through their mating bond. It was almost overwhelming.

"Let's go back to the hotel room, John," she said firmly. She needed to get him calm and centered again.

John bared his teeth and he actually snarled at her in anger, but he complied. She felt his pulsating rage and it was a struggle for her to remain calm herself during the short drive.

As soon as they got back to the room, Joss snapped at her mate, "What is wrong with you, John? We are so close to putting them away. Don't lose your cool now!"

"They have taken so much from me, my parents, my pack, and now they want to take you too." John's voice choked off and he turned to stare out the window.

Joss stared at her mate, stunned by the depth of his emotion and the anger drained out of her. John had lost so much at the hands of the twins, but she was not going to let him lose anything or anyone else. She moved to his side and slid under his arm, placing her arms around his waist and resting her head against his shoulder.

"We know they're coming, John, and we'll be ready. I'm not going anywhere, promise."

John hugged her tight against his body, "You're right. They don't know you can feel them coming."

Joss snuggled up to his side. "How do you want to handle this? We can't go to Everett with what we know, since it was obtained through what is basically an illegal wiretap, breaking and entering, and felony hacking. We're going to need some solid evidence before we go around accusing his family of murder."

John's arm tightened around her. "Then we have to become targets and let them come."

* * *

John and Joss spent the rest of the day making themselves attractive targets. They walked everywhere instead of driving, they took less traveled streets when they could and they acted like they were oblivious to their surroundings, though in reality, they were on high alert. However, Joss didn't feel the twins and John didn't see them. Finally after a light meal, they decided to head back to their hotel.

As they entered the hallway where their room was located Joss stopped in her tracks and closed her eyes. John recognized that she was sensing something and waited quietly while she reached out with her Wolf senses.

Joss opened her eyes and looked up at him, her face grim with determination. "They're in our room waiting for us," she said.

"Just the two of them?"

"Yes."

John looked grim, "Ready?"

Joss smiled up at her mate, "I was born ready."

John couldn't help but smile. He laid one of his large hands on his mate's cheek "That's my girl," he said softly while his thumb caressed her cheek bone. "Let's go take down a couple of killers."

They walked down the hallway and John slipped the key card into the slot. He gently kissed his mate before he pulled the key card out the slot unlocking the door. They nodded to each other, John opened the door and they rushed in.

Mark and Marie were completely caught off guard as John and Joss tackled them.

John leaped on Mark with a roar and they rolled over the bed onto the floor on the other side. They hit the floor hard with Mark on the bottom, knocking the air out of him, but he still managed to get a good hard hit on John's cheek. John rolled to his feet in one fluid motion and turned to face Mark. Mark got to his knees and whipped out a gun. John, with the speed of a striking cobra, kicked the gun out of Mark's hand so hard he broke Mark's wrist. Mark screamed in pain, grabbing his wrist. John grabbed him by the shirt and picked him up so they were nose to nose. Mark looked into John's eyes and saw death.

"You killed my parents," John said in the most menacing voice Mark had ever heard. Then John began punching him in the face while Mark screamed and kicked.

Meanwhile, Joss and Marie were locked in a struggle on the bed. Marie grabbed for Joss's throat, but Joss brought her arms up and flung them out hard, breaking the hold. Joss grabbed Marie's shoulders and flung her to the floor at the foot of the bed. Joss leaped off the bed and braced herself for the next attack.

Marie pulled a knife and waved it at Joss, but Joss was far from impressed. She could tell from the way Marie was holding the knife she had no idea what she was doing. Joss curled her upper lip into a snarl, "Well, aren't you an inexperienced little bitch? Let's see how you handle an experienced one!"

Joss's taunt had the desired effect; Marie shrieked in anger and recklessly lunged for her. Marie had several inches and about forty pounds on Joss, but she'd had no hand to hand combat training. Joss neatly sidestepped, grabbed Marie's knife wrist and smashed her elbow into nose breaking it, causing it to gush blood. Marie went down to one knee stunned, whimpering in pain and dropping the knife. Joss swiftly cuffed Marie's hands behind her back.

With Marie neutralized, Joss finally had a chance to check on her mate and saw John pummeling Mark. She grabbed her mate's arm. "John, stop!" she commanded. "It's over, baby. It's over." John looked at Joss in confusion for a second, then he dropped Mark who collapsed in a heap onto the floor and gathered Joss into his arms. He put his head on her shoulder and began crying. Joss held him tightly and stroked his hair, murmuring soothing words to him. After twenty-two years of wondering, of angst, over his parents' death it was finally over.

A few minutes later, someone began pounding on the door. John opened the door and Everett walked into the room, "We got a report of a disturbance…" He stopped dead when he saw his siblings, bloodied, beaten and handcuffed. "Oh my god."

John laid his hand on his friend's shoulder. He'd been dreading this moment. "I'm sorry Everett, but Mark and Marie have been running a smuggling operation under your nose for over twenty years. They killed my parents and then the Hunters when they discovered what was going on."

Everett leaned against the wall of the room like he was going to be sick. All of a sudden a lot of things made sense to him now. He looked so sad that Joss's heart ached for him. "I should have known, I should have known," Everett said in a broken voice.

It was only then that Joss noticed the cut on her arm. It was a small slash on her forearm but John fussed over her like it was a fatal wound until the paramedics were called.

The rest of the night passed in a blur. Everett called for backup and for the paramedics. The paramedics treated Mark, Marie, and Joss for their injuries. Mark and Marie were booked and questioned. John and Joss gave their statements and were sent back to their hotel in the early morning hours.

The hotel had moved them to another room across the hall so that the blood could be cleaned out of the carpet in their old room. John and Joss gratefully climbed into the bed as soon as they got to their new room and John curled protectively around his injured mate. They slept soundly for the first time since they had gotten to Puyallup.

The next morning, Everett found them in the diner having a very late breakfast. He looked gray and haggard and Joss ached for him all over again. As rough as last night had been for her and John, it had turned out so much worse for him.

"Are you alright?" She asked as he sat down heavily next to her in the booth.

"I will be someday," Everett replied tiredly as he rubbed his hands over his face.

John waved to the waitress to order Everett a cup of coffee and a plate of pancakes. "Thanks, you didn't have to do that," Everett said.

John grinned at his friend, "A certain someone keeps telling me that food is important. You looked like you could use some."

Everett sighed, "I thought you should know that we have made a positive fingerprint match between Mark and Marie and the prints found at your parents and the Hunters' murders. There is no doubt that they killed them all." Everett paused and looked down at the table, "They even killed Mark's own mate when she wanted to stop smuggling. Just like they killed Pete and his whole family. All for money."

"I'm sorry Everett," John said sympathetically.

Everett shrugged, "I knew Mark and Marie were rotten, but I never would have thought they would kill their Alphas, twice, and their pack mates. How could Mark kill his own mate? My god, think about it John, he must have felt her fear and panic through their mating bond while he held her head under water. He felt her die. How could anyone do that?"

"I don't know, Everett," John answered honestly, looking over at Joss. "But you can't torture yourself with it."

Everett's food arrived and they ate in silence. When he was done eating, Everett stood up. "I'm going home to take a nap. Will you guys be around later?"

John nodded, "We will probably be at the Den. Mags wanted us to spend some time with her before we leave."

* * *

Next chapter Joss and Lisa have that confrontation that you all have been asking for! :)


	11. Chapter 11 - Goodbye and Welcome

**Chapter 11 - Goodbye and Welcome**

Joss was perched on a stool at the Den, sipping a Dr Pepper and chatting with Mags when Lisa walked in. Joss recognized her immediately from John's description. Joss smiled pleasantly at the newcomer, but Lisa merely glared. Mags leaned on the bar and raised an eyebrow at Lisa. "Lees, have you met Jocelyn?" she asked in the same tone of voice she would use with a recalcitrant child.

Lisa looked over at Joss with a distinctly unfriendly look. "No," she said shortly in a tone of voice that plainly said she would rather gouge her eyes out with spoons than meet Jocelyn.

Joss was unfazed. John had told her about his confrontation with this woman a couple of days ago, so Joss already knew she was not Lisa's favorite person. Not that she cared much, but she thought she should make an effort to be friendly to someone who had once been important to her mate. Her mama raised her to polite after all.

Joss smiled pleasantly at the newcomer,"Hi, I'm Jocelyn. It's nice to finally meet you."

Lisa, however, had other ideas.

"I'm Lisa," the blonde woman replied in a distinctly chilly manner. "Did John tell you how close we were in school? We…ran together quite often. I, ahem, ran with him first." Lisa looked smug, like she had scored a point.

Joss gave Lisa her best "Bitch Please" look. _OK, if that is how you want to play it_, Joss thought. "It doesn't matter who ran with him first, it's who ran with him last that counts. And that would me.

"You see honey, unlike you, I would follow John to the ends of the Earth, because I love him that much. So it will **always** be **me**."

Lisa visibly shrank in on herself, but she unwisely fought back.

"Everett's heart it is broken, I hope your proud of yourself, you and your mate," she snarled at Joss, pronouncing the word "mate" like it was an expletive.

Mags opened her mouth to say something but Joss caught her eye. With a quick shake of her head, Joss communicated to her new friend, _I got this_. In return Mags's mouth split into a wide grin and she leaned back against the counter behind the bar to enjoy the show.

Joss set her soda down on the bar and turned her seat towards Lisa. Joss's legs were crossed, she had one hand on her hip and the other elbow on the bar. She fixed a cold, hard stare on Lisa, "You'll have to take that up with Mark, Marie and Matt."

Lisa sulked. "You shouldn't have come, Everett would have caught them."

Joss glared at Lisa. "Let's get a few things straight. Had Everett gotten close to the truth, Mark and Marie would have killed him; just like they killed everyone else threatened their operation. Everett was alone with no back up. John and I survived for one reason, because we're a team and we had each other to rely on.

"So stop sulking like some damn Disney princess, you're lucky you're not a widow right now."

Lisa stared at Joss for a minute, then slid off her stool and quietly left the building.

* * *

Later, John leaned against the bar in the Den, watching his mate laugh and talk with Janelle and Mags and some of the other she Wolves of the pack. She caught his eye and gave him one of her huge smiles that never failed to make his heart skip a beat and went back to her conversation.

Everett walked in and stood next to Reese watching Joss. "You're a lucky man, John. She's an amazing woman and Wolf."

"Ev, you have no idea how lucky I am," John replied as he reluctantly tore his eyes from his mate and looked over at his friend.

Everett still had bags under his eyes and his clothes were rumpled like he had slept in them. "I thought you should know; I talked to my dad. He knew Mark and Marie killed your parents. That's why he started the whole rumor about you being the murderer; to deflect attention from them. To put it bluntly, he needed a scapegoat and you were the best candidate."

Everett took a deep breath, "Dad knew all along what Mark and Marie were doing, but he helped them cover the whole thing up. He couldn't face the thought of them going to jail."

Everett hung his head, "I'm sorry, John, about all of it. If I hadn't been blinded by loyalty to a family that didn't deserve it, I would have seen what was happening a long time ago. Maybe the Hunters and some of the others would still be alive."

John shook his head. "You can't blame yourself. Mark and Marie killed the Hunters, you didn't. All you're guilty of is believing that your family wasn't a bunch of killers. I can't blame you for that; no one can."

Everett leaned heavily on the bar. "John, I need to tell you something. I don't think I can take over the pack, not after what my family did. The pack should have been yours a long time ago, I won't stand in your way if you want become our Alpha."

John shook his head again. "I don't belong here anymore. New York is my home and I already have a pack there that depends on me, depends on us." John inclined his head in Joss's direction. "We'll be going home in a few hours."

Everett rubbed his hand over his face. "I was afraid you were going to say that. You changed a lot, more so than any of us who stayed here. I don't think this little town could contain you even if you did want to stay. But I had to ask. The pack needs a new leader, a strong one after everything we've been through. I think it's going to take a Born Alpha to get us straightened out."

John nodded, "You would be a strong leader, Everett. I don't think you should give up quite so easily."

Everett shook his head, "No, I've already heard rumblings from some of the pack members. I'm tainted by what my family did. The pack needs to start over."

John sighed, "I'm sorry to hear that. You would have been a good Alpha."

"Thanks, I appreciate that. But honestly, I don't want it anymore. My family ruined it for me."

"I know some Born Alphas that don't have a pack yet. I'll make some calls. Once the word is out you may have more applicants than you know what to do with. This is a nice place to live and raise a family."

"Thanks, John. You and Joss have a safe trip home. Don't forget about us, OK?"

"I never did, Ev."

Everett gripped John on his shoulder and left.

As soon as Everett left, Janelle waved John over to the table. John obediently walked over and sat down next to his mate, grinning at the old she Wolf.

Janelle smiled fondly over at John. "Mags and I have something to give you and Joss before you leave, John. It's been sitting in my closet for a very long time and it's time it was returned to its rightful owner. I tried to find you several times over the years to give it to you, but the Army had you listed as "whereabouts unknown."

Mags reached under the table and produced a cardboard box; about the size of a box used to store files, and pushed it over to John and Joss.

"After the police finally released your house, Mags and I shifted through the wreckage, looking for anything that was still intact."

John looked at the box, his heart pounding fast, "I didn't think anything had survived the explosion and the fire. The house was completely demolished."

Janelle nodded, "Yes, it was pretty thoroughly destroyed, but a few items survived. Just enough to fill this box. We've been keeping it all this time hoping you would return someday. I just couldn't bring myself to throw it away."

John stared at the box for a minute. It seemed so unfair that his parents, both good people, good Wolves and descendants of some of the oldest bloodlines, should have their lives reduced to one small box. But, as he firmly reminded himself, for the last twenty-two years he'd thought that nothing at all survived from his parents and his childhood, so he was going to be grateful for whatever was in this box.

Tentatively he opened the lid, fortunately any smell of smoke and fire that had clung to the items inside has dissipated over the years. Slowly he began looking through the items.

There were a surprising number of photographs. Most of them were singed, but they were there. John stopped at one; it showed his parents exactly as he remembered them. They were sitting on the couch that used to be in their living room, his dad had his arm around his mom, and she was leaning into him with a huge, happy smile on her face. His dad had a small smile on his face; he'd never been much of a smiler, but John could tell he was happy. The picture had probably been taken only a year or so before they were killed.

John continued looking through the box, there were a few of his father's tools and a vase, with a small chip out of it that he remembered as being intact. His dad's wallet was in there, along with a few pieces of his grandmother's' silver.

Then he pulled a ring box out. He stared down at the box for minutes and looked at Janelle. Janelle smiled at him while a tear rolled down her cheek. "Yes, that's what you think it is. Your mom was wearing it when she died and Sheriff Berke was kind enough to release your parent's personal effects to me when he found out that I was collecting their things for you."

With tears in his eyes, John opened the box to reveal his mother's precious emerald ring. John's father had bought it for her when John was born because emerald was the birthstone for May, and she had cherished it. His mom had told him once that when he mated, she would give the ring to his mate. Over the years, whenever John had thought about his parents he would wonder what had happened to that ring.

John lifted it from the box. Janelle had obviously had the ring cleaned and repaired, it was in perfect condition. He heard Janelle telling Joss about the history of the ring and how important it had been to John's mother.

John's voice was soft, he could barely get the words out. "Hold out your hand, Joss."

Joss did as he asked and he slipped the ring on her finger.

"It's a perfect fit!" Mags exclaimed with tears in her eyes.

"It's beautiful," Joss whispered as she moved her hand around causing the emerald to flash.

John didn't have the words to say how he felt, so he cupped his hand behind Joss's head and pulled her to him for a gentle, loving kiss. He touched his forehead to hers and allowed himself to get lost in her large, soft eyes for a minute.

Finally he turned to Janelle and Mags, who had watched the whole time while wiping tears from their eyes. "Thank you," he said simply, but his eyes said everything else that needed to be said.

Janelle leaned forward and laid her hand over his, "We should be thanking you and your mate, John. You two have lifted a great weight off the shoulders of the Pack. After all these years, after all those secrets and lies, we're finally and truly free of the evil that festered for so long."

John and Joss sat with Mags and Janelle for a while longer while they entertained Joss with stories of John's youth. Finally, John checked his watch. "It's time to go," he said softly with a smile. They said their goodbyes to Mags and Janelle and left the bar, hand in hand.

To Joss's surprise, John drove in the opposite direction from the airport. Instead, he drove them out into the woods and parked on one of the logging roads that had become so familiar to them over the last few days. Joss turned to her mate as they got out of the car, "What are we doing out here? Did you forget something?"

John smiled, "In a way I did. I forgot where I came from. I think it's time I showed my mate the woods I grew up in. We have a few hours before our plane leaves, feel like a run?"

Joss smiled at him and quickly doffed her clothing while John did the same. Then a large salt and pepper Wolf with a smaller black Wolf loped off into the brush, together.

* * *

A few days after their return to New York, John returned to the apartment he shared with Joss and Taylor very late one night after successfully wrapping up the latest number. As he walked into the living room, he realized that something looked different. He paused in the middle of the room and looked around.

He realized a few things had been added to the décor. On the shelf in the curio cabinet was the vase from his parent's house, carefully turned so the chip was in the back. Several of the pictures they had brought back from Washington had been framed and joined the ones of Joss's family scattered around the room.

Joss walked in from the kitchen, "Notice anything different?"

"I do. Thank you," he said with a smile as Joss snuggled under his arm against his side.

"It's kinda nice to have some things from your family around," Joss said looking around. "It feels like OUR home now that there's a part of you here too."

John kissed the top of her head, "It's been a long time since I had a real home. It feels good."

Joss looked up at her mate, her eyes shining, "Welcome home, John."

* * *

Well that's it folks, thanks for reading! The Wolves will return soon, I promise.

Once again I have to thank my awesome betas for helping me make this story better than it was. Thanks to everyone who left a review. I have tried to respond to all the reviewers who have a login, if I missed anyone, I'm sorry! I'm sorry I can't respond individually to the Guests, but you are all very much appreciated!


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